Sadala Chronicles: The Saiyan and the Devil's Fruit
by TrueUtopian
Summary: The story of a young Saiyan in his journey to becoming an Elite member of the Sadala Forces, and the mystery surrounding the disappearance of a planet and its people, with the only clue being a spiky fruit. A prequel leading to the events of Dragon Ball Super before the Tournament with Universe 6. [AU]
1. The Saiyan and the fruit

**Welcome! This is an imaginary story** – **quoting Alan Moore, "aren't they all?"** – **where I try to write a backstory for Cabba, the young Saiyan from Universe 6. I took many liberties with it, taking cues from both the anime and manga** –w **hich kind of contradict themselves** – **, alongside Xenoverse 2.**

 **This is an Alternate Universe.**

* * *

 **Sadala Chronicles**

 **I'll become an Elite Hero!**

 **The Saiyan and the fruit**

 **I**

The great hero held the kid in his arms while the cameras were capturing the moment for the history of the planet. The child was excited, with a great smile on his face. It wasn't every day the Emperor of the Universe personally visited Sadala and interacted with its citizens – as he usually came just for reunions with the king.

This time though, he was with the small children and their parents – celebrating another victory in the war against the space pirates.

"My, my, what a charming little kid. " Frost said, with a jovial smile on his face looking at the parents of the child. "I bet his parents are very proud, I'm sure."

"Y-Yes, your highness! It's an honor!" said the mother of the child. "He always says how he hopes to be a great hero just like you!"

"Is that so? Well, I'm flattered!" the emperor put the child on the floor. The child was cheerful, but rather shy too, as he was having trouble finding what to say to the emperor. "Don't worry young one, I'm not going to do anything to you. Tell me: what is your name?"

"Cabba, sir!"

"You should have seen him, Master Renso!" Cabba said delightfully while evading some small robots shooting at him.

Renso smiled at his young student's energy. They were in his home backyard, training as Cabba's weekly studies took part in that day. While he was rather young to be part of the Sadala Defense Force, Cabba's parents wanted to be sure he was properly trained as it was a family tradition for the eldest child to be a soldier. Captain Renso was made his personal teacher, with some difficulty, however.

"Nice to hear that, Cabba. I never managed to see Frost that close before, I'm quite envious myself."

"What's so great about that wimpy-looking freak?"

A girl with the same age as Cabba walked out of the house. She had a spiky hair and pink clothes, with an annoyed look on her face. Cabba was so offended by that comment about his hero that one of the robots managed to shoot him in the back. It hurt him with a small shock.

"Caulifla! Frost is a great hero!" Cabba said in a nerdy fury, "He has saved countless planets from pirates! I have all of his books! He even signed my copy of _Frost Tales: Junior Edition_ today! When I grow up, I'm going to become as great as he is!"

"Big deal." Caulifla said with a smirk. "I'm only 8 years old and I already consider myself better than him. You will have to surpass me first."

"What?! How can you say that?! You aren't even training to be part of the Sadala Defense Force, the greatest army in the universe!"

"If the army is the greatest in the universe," Caulifla smirked, "then their standards are as low as the Galactic Patrol's effectiveness."

"What!? You're calling both the Galactic Patrol and the Sadala army wimps?!"

"Well, yeah." Caulifla kept smirking. "I'm saying that."

"Well you two, calm down." Renso decided to intervene and put his hand on her shoulder. "Caulifla, please leave, Cabba needs to train."

"You promised me you would train me today, bro."

"Oh? Oh, right, I forgot." Renso touched his face in embarrassment. He usually trains Caulifla, depending on her mood, but forgot due to Cabba's training. Can't be blamed, he makes some extra credits doing so. "Sorry, Caulifla. Can we do it on another day?"

"No! I want to be strong enough to defeat you now!"

"Didn't you say you were already better than Frost?" Cabba said with a grin on his face. It was highly unusual for him to be arrogant. Caulifla grew annoyed at him.

"What? You want to fight pipsqueak!? If you really want to train, how about with my fists on your face?"

"Caulifla, calm down!" Renso held her to avoid unnecessary fighting between the two brats. "I'm sorry I forgot I had to train you today, but…"

"Master Renso, let me fight her, please".

Renso had a look of shock on his face, while Caulifla was simply confused. The young boy put himself in the battle position his teacher taught him, albeit an awkward one as he couldn't still put his legs in the right position. Renso wasn't really sure of making them fight, but Caulifla was more than happy to brawl.

"Heh! I see the pipsqueak has the right attitude! Come on bro, I'll end it in a minute!"

"Cabba," Renso asked in a serious tone "are you sure about this?"

Cabba nodded.

The three of them were in the front yard for this fight. While Cabba was warming up his body in his training uniform, Caulifla merely stood still impatiently waiting for him to finish while wearing her casual clothes.

"Caulifla, aren't you going to warm up?" Renso asked.

"Why should I? For me, fighting against this pipsqueak is the warming up, big bro."

Renso was rather annoyed at her attitude, but decided to not respond. Her attitude wasn't anything new.

"All right, listen well you two. This is just a practice between you two. Remember that, Caulifla. The first to knock down the adversary wins, okay? I will not allow any energy attacks. I don't want my house to be destroyed. Again."

"I told you it was an accident, bro!"

"As I was saying: I want a clean fight. The first to knock down the adversary wins, alright?"

Cabba took the same position as before as he was trained to do by his teacher, with his arms raised and a slightly crouched position, while Caulifla merely raised her arms and started to jump impatiently. The wind blew during the seconds the two of them waited for them to strike the first hit on their adversary.

Caulifla thought to herself that this was an easy fight. Cabba, however, wanted to defend the honor of his hero while to also impress his teacher in how much he practiced to become a soldier like him.

"Start!"

Caulifla quickly went against Cabba in the fight, jumping right through where he was, however, Cabba managed to grab her arm and throw her to the ground.

"Hey, I did it!" Cabba happily remarked.

"Like hell you did!" Caulifla quickly went and started to punch Cabba repeatedly. The speed of her fists was remarkable, as Cabba couldn't avoid many of them striking him in the face. He didn't try to fight back.

"What's wrong, pipsqueak? Won't defend yourself?" Caulifla asked while still punching him.

Cabba then punched her in the face, which visibly hurt her. He was visibly worried.

"Oh my god, sorry! I didn't try to hurt you that…" Cabba tried to finish the sentence, but Caulifla took his arm and threw him down to the ground. She then put her feet on his head while stretching his arm. Cabba was in pain.

"Come on! Give up! "Caulifla kept stretching his arm. He didn't want to keep fighting.

"I give, I give!" Cabba screamed out of frustration.

"You two, stop! That is enough!" Renso went and stopped them from fighting any more. He was visibly disappointed in the two of them, which made Cabba feel bad for himself for not showing him what he wanted to do.

"I'm not asking you two to stop because of the fight," said Renso. Cabba and Caulifla were confused over that statement "I'm stopping you because we have a visitor. You two, greet our guest".

Right in front of them, there was a woman wearing a gray armor of the Sadala Forces watching the fight with delight on her face. The wind was blowing again, with her spiky hair going along with it, as she was amused by the fight of the kids. Once she saw her, Caulifla screamed in complete happiness.

"Aunt Taura!" Caulifla jumped right into her big arms, with returning the smile.

"Heya, kid. I see you're getting stronger every day, huh? Are you planning on taking my spot as the strongest in the force?"

"Na-ah" Caulifla said, "I'm planning on becoming the strongest Saiyan, the Sadala Elite will never top me!"

Both of them laughed very hard, while Cabba was getting up, ashamed of himself for losing in such an embarrassing way.

"Hey Renso, your student needs to learn how to strike a girl if he wants to truly be a soldier. There is no shame in that!"

"I noticed," Renso said in a subtle voice. "He is good at defending, but has a hard time hitting anyone."

"I guess the new generation of Saiyans isn't worth the time".

Cabba felt terrible. Not only was he blushing out of shame, but a member of the Sadala Elite just called him useless. And to think he thought of himself as having the best day of his life after meeting Frost, but he guessed he was wrong.

"But, what about me?!" Caulifla asked as she was visibly offended.

"You are becoming stronger, but you have a lame position, kid. He managed to dodge some of your attacks, right?"

Caulifla, for the first time in a while, didn't reply, and merely stood quiet.

"Well, well. Anyway, Taura, what brings you to my humble home? Do the Elite need me right now?"

"Captain Renso, sir. We need to speak in private."

Renso and Taura went inside the house to talk privately and asked Cabba and Caulifla to wait outside for the moment. Caulifla, however, couldn't wait any moment and decided to listen to the conversation between the two soldiers. She went behind the house in order to find a window, but Renso was careful and closed was annoyed.

"Man, what a pain!" Caulifla was kicking her feet to the ground repeatedly, "It's not every day I can hear two Elites talking between themselves! "

"I-I guess so! But, we shouldn't be listening, Caulifla." Cabba replied, embarrassed.

"If that's the case, why are you here, pipsqueak?" Cabba knew what he was doing, and couldn't think of a nice response to say to her face, so he simply stood quiet. "Say, do you even know who Taura is?"

Cabba looked at her with an enthusiastic look on his face and answered like a parrot.

"She is a famous war hero who saved many planets alongside Frost! She took care of the Phototauros, a terrible beast that destroyed populations! She has been in countless wars and is considered the pride for the Saiyans by winning the Hero recognition from Frost and King Sadala himself!"

"You talk like an encyclopedia, pipsqueak," Caulifla replied with an annoyed look on her face. "But, you're right! I will surpass her as the strongest Saiyan around!"

"But you don't want to join the Sadala Defense Force, Caulifla."

"You're right, I won't join them. I don't believe I need some annoying rules to become the best. I'll find my own way, pipsqueak." Caulifla said while still looking for a way to look inside the house.

"R-Right" Cabba replied, still embarrassed. "But, could you please stop calling me pipsqueak? My name is Cabba."

"Look. If you want me to acknowledge you, you will have to beat me first. At this point, you're just a bamboo whiner to me."

Caulifla making fun of his figure annoyed him, but he couldn't think of a good response. He was trying to tell her to stop looking, but as the saying goes, curiosity killed the cat, and Cabba was also quite interested in what a great heroine like Taura could be talking with Renso.

"Hey, look" Caulifla whispered right in his face. "I think I found a hole there. Do you know how to fly?"

"Y-Yes! "Cabba replied in his normal voice, to which Caulifla shushed him. "Yes. I know how to fly, a little anyway."

"Good. Then I won't have to go alone."

Caulifla floated through the air without any issue and went to the roof. Cabba decided to follow her, but with some difficulty. Above the roof, both kids noticed there wasn't smoke on the chimney. Caulifla looked at him straight to the face real close.

"We'll fly and stay inside the chimney for a while to hear the conversation, do you understand?" Cabba was worried. While he was able to fly for short periods, staying afloat for long a while was something he hasn't done before as part of his training. He nodded in response, as he gently flew down inside the chimney, with Caulifla following him.

The voices of Renso and Taura could be heard perfectly.

"… As I was saying, the captain from Planet Sweetz brought me up this delicious food while we were on Planet Cinnam," Taura was commenting while laughing. "It was the most delicious thing I ever tasted in my life, Renso, I tell you! It was like, a waterfall of honey in my mouth!"

"I'm impressed you managed to eat all of that. As I understand, Planet Cinnam's atmosphere is hard for us Saiyans unless you wear a mask." Renso replied while chuckling. "Last time I went, I had to endure some terrible pills for two days. I missed eating solid meat."

Taura laughed in response. Caulifla, who was above Cabba, grunted in annoyance.

"What?!" She quietly screamed. "It was only a greeting? That's lame!"

"Yeah, but that's part of working with the Frost empire. You experience new things, including the disappearance of a planet."

"A planet?!" Renso raised his voice in surprise. Cabba never heard him that worried before, but he too was surprised. "Why do you think it happened?"

"Beats me," Taura replied with a calm tone. Cabba noticed Caulifla wasn't grunting, but instead flying closer to him in order to listen better. "Frost wanted to go to Planet Yardrat for a while, but by the time we arrived, the planet was simply gone." Taura remained quiet after saying that, Cabba could hear her walking around the room. He got scared of being found but couldn't fly upwards.

"There was no witness to the destruction of the planet around the neighboring planets, and the Galactic Patrol never noticed anything unusual. It was like the planet simply disappeared, and no members of the Yardrats are found in the Galaxy as far as the Galactic Intel can tell. I'm worried. "

"Yeah, I don't judge you," Renso replied. "I met some members of the planet years ago; they had unusual techniques but are harmless. What could have happened to them?"

"That's not why I came here, though." Even without watching them, both Caulifla and Cabba somehow knew she was smiling. "You see, we actually found something possibly related to this case. Look at this."

Cabba and Caulifla couldn't look at the object from their position, but they heard the sound of an object falling on the table.

"A fruit?" Renso asked. "Just a fruit? I never saw any fruit this spiky."

"Not just any mere fruit. We don't have any data on this kind of fruit, but we found it on Planet Cinnam from a merchant. It took me a while, but I managed to find that this woman was on Planet Yardrat just some weeks ago and that this fruit was planted on that same planet. "

"What does that mean? It's just a fruit, isn't it?"

"Well, I asked this woman to eat it."

"And?"

"Her power grew ten times fold."

"You're joking."

"I wish I was."

Cabba was starting to feel pressure on his body. He wasn't used to flying yet, but he didn't want to retire, and neither was Caulifla who was pressing her body against his back trying to listen to the conversation. He never heard of any sort of power booster before, only read about Frost Assault form in _Frost Tales._

"Something that could increase your power," Caulifla said to his ear. "That sounds cool!"

"And what happened?" Renso asked after a brief pause.

"We arrested her for illegal substances after I kicked her ass, no sweat, and interrogated her about what happened to the planet. "

"So you only have a clue, but don't know what happened."

"Yeah, it is frustrating." She kept walking a little closer, as the kids could hear her steps getting closer to the chimney. "I will keep this fruit in order to further investigate it, and just wanted to tell you about it. I will possibly need your help in the future."

"You can always count on me. Let's hope we find out what happened."

"Yeah, let's hope so. By the way…"

Taura punched the chimney with enough force to make it crumble. An exhausted Cabba fell to the bottom of the chimney, while Caulifla managed to escape undetected. Taura grabbed him by the hair.

"Well, we have a cute troublemaker." She looked at him directly in the eyes. Her attitude reminded him a lot of Caulifla, and that scared him to death. "How much did you hear, boy?"

"N-Nothing! I swear!" Cabba was crying, terrified of her.

"Jeez kid, is not a big deal, but I guess I shouldn't expect less from a Saiyan born from non-combatants."

She threw him to the ground; walked directly to the table and grabbed the fruit, although Cabba couldn't see what it looked like. "Renso, teach him some manners for me, will ya? I need to get going. Don't let what I told you to get out of here and this crybaby".

"Yes, I understand."

Taura left the house, with Renso visibly disappointed. He went directly to him and helped him stand up. "This is very unusual for you to do, Cabba. I'm not angry, but, a future lesson, you can't listen to private conversations. You need to learn that as a future soldier."

Cabba did a salute to his teacher, trying to hold back his tears.

After finishing his training for the day, Cabba went home by nightfall. He didn't see Caulifla on the way. It was better that way, after having such a great moment meeting Frost, Caulifla simply ruined the rest of the day for him, and he didn't want to see her again, at least for now. He greeted his parents and went directly to his room. He fell to his bed, trying to sleep.

His room had many posters of the Emperor of the Universe, and behind one of them there was a copy of his favorite (and only) book not related to Frost.

"I hope I can be as good as a hero as you are", Cabba spoke to the posters. He felt silly doing so. He wondered about the fruit Taura spoke about with Renso, as it seemed to be important. Renso told him to not tell anybody about it, not even his parents. It was alright, he knew for sure the news about the fruit will come out one day and he will have the first edition of the book containing such story.

Before falling asleep, the words Caulifla said to him started to sound inside his head. "If you want me to acknowledge you, you will have to beat me first. At this point, you're just a bamboo whiner to me."

"I'm not a whiner." Cabba thought to himself. "You will call me by my name. I swear I'll make you acknowledge me."

* * *

 **Author Note: Planet Cinnam is the made-up name for the place where Hit was during his mini-arc, where the citizens wore a weird mask. I really like the setting and mood of that mini-arc!**

 **Update 27/11/2018: Greetings! I changed a few words here and there. I took out the word "holidays" and changed it to "for another victory in the war against the Space Pirates", and added a line describing Cabba's family as non-combatant Saiyans. I also changed the name of the story to "Sadala Chronicles" since I thought it would be more fitting. I hope you don't mind!**

 **Update 17/03/2019: I want to thank Kagari for being my editor, as she helped me fix a lot of mistakes in this chapter when it comes to grammar. I also changed the title of the chapter so it could refer more than one character, and added a line foreshadowing future events.**


	2. Lad Sarced

**There is no commentary here. I just wanted the chapter's title to be in the middle.**  
 **Enjoy.**

* * *

 **Lad Sarced**

 **II**

The night was completely peaceful, with no worries for the people of Sadala's lower sectors. However, by early morning, the frying pans started to make a lot of noise in that room. "Cabba, wake up!" she screamed and so did he yelling for help, only for his mother to calm him down. "Calm down! It may be rude, but you need to get used to it!"

"I don't think," Cabba said, breathing heavily, "I don't think this is how heroes are supposed to wake up, mother!"

"Oh dear, my apologies," she told him while still on the door, "but trust me, soldiers get it worse than this while on other planets. Take it from me." Cabba calmed himself down, somewhat tearful. His mother noticed, sighing. "The sun hasn't revealed itself. You know what that means, right?"

"Running down through the entire neighborhood again, mother?"

"Oh dear, that's only on Saturday. Today is Monday."

Cabba couldn't think very clearly, with his mind being foggy. His mother used to be a medic in a defense squad, so she made sure to wake him up every day, very early for training in a strict military fashion, as she was taught. He couldn't exactly remember a day where she didn't wake him up, but he still got trouble getting used to it. His mind kept flying through the sky until it landed on his bed like a meteor, remembering what was important about Monday.

"School?"

"Indeed! You will return from your brief vacations, Cabba! You will meet all your teachers again!"

"Oh, that's great," Cabba replied with a sleepy voice.

He was never excited about school, but he didn't want to disappoint his mother. He took a bath, brushed his teeth, fed his pet, a feathered velociraptor – named Toyble, but that's not important to the story – and went to the table to eat breakfast with his mother. Pterodactyl eggs the size of watermelons, the usual. She was writing on a small computer while eating, something she always did as she worked with the government as a reporter.

His brother was too young to go to the Sadalian Academy, and to be fair nobody was sure if he was up for battle, so he was allowed to keep sleeping. Cabba felt a bit envious about it, but pitied his brother being a possible defective Saiyan.

"By the way" his mother started the conversation, "I heard you destroyed your master's chimney. What about it?"

"It wasn't me!" Cabba had forgotten about it. He wanted to talk about the fruit with his parents, but Renso told him not to. "It was... an accident, yeah."

"An accident?" She asked, incredulously. "He told us his chimney crumbled, and you were involved."

"Ah, yes," Cabba said, thinking of an excuse. He wanted to blame Caulifla, but didn't have the strength to do so _. Is not something Frost would do_ , he thought to himself _, a hero like him wouldn't lie to save himself_. "I was training my flying, and ended inside the chimney."

His mother looked at him with disbelief. He thought at high speed and stood up from the table, flexing his body while smiling nervously. "Well, mom! Look at the time, is better to go early to the academy!" His mother tried to stop him but he ended up running very quickly.

Between Cabba's home and Lad Sarced it could take around seven hours walking, or three with a vehicle, but part of his training was running from those points and stopping for breaks every five checkpoints, where Renso's subordinates would keep an eye on him.

If he kept running, he wouldn't feel the coldness of the morning.

"Lad Sarced is considered the capital of Planet Sadala due to three important factors: being the home of the Saiyan king, the place where the Sadala Defense Forces headquarters are located, and the Lad Sarced Coliseum. Every year, the king hosts a special event where the recruits for the Sadala Elite, new and old, can prove their worth fighting against creatures from different worlds in order to entertain the masses. In words of the king, _even though Saiyans have to protect the weak, they must also prove they are part of the proud warrior race._ The person who manages to impress a series of judges will be considered the strongest Saiyan, the champion."

"And I'm going to be the next champ!" Caulifla said out loud. Some of the kids from her gang, started to clap in response, but most of the class kept quiet trying to listen to the lesson.

"Caulifla, please, keep quiet!" The instructor screamed in fury. "I don't care if your brother is a Captain, I'll send you to the dinosaurs if you keep interrupting!"

Annoyed, Caulifla sat on her usual spot with her legs crossed, not even listening to the class. Cabba was writing down everything the instructor was saying, even making sure he wrote "Lad Sarced" correctly. The class was outside the building under a giant tree, with a clear look at the enormous coliseum, a triangular-shaped building with an entrance in the shape of an oval. Above the entrance, there was a poster of the current champion Taura, alongside a man wearing odd goggles.

"Anyway, despite what you might believe, not everyone can enter into the Coliseum!" the instructor said while pointing at the building with some enthusiasm," only members of the Sadala Defense Force can enter in such event due to how dangerous it is! So that means foreigners to our race, non-combatants and especially no punk may enter," he said while gazing at Caulifla, who took offense but decided to not say anything. Cabba, however, was curious and raised his hand.

"Excuse me, mister Zanar, but how old do you have to be in order to participate?"

The instructor looked at the building a bit, before looking at the kids once again. "Well, Cabba," he said somewhat amused by the question, awkwardly smiling, "most Elite members are adults, you know?"

"Oh, I see. Sorry for asking, mister."

Some of the kids started to talk among themselves to laugh at such a stupid question.

When the class finished, all the kids stayed in the backyard of the academy to enjoy the recess. There was noise everywhere, with kids running around. Lord knows what would happen if the electric barrier around, created to restrict the powers of the Saiyans for security purposes, would be deactivated. Cabba sat alone behind the same tree from the class, in order to take notes in his notebook. He didn't like hanging out with too much people, it made him feel too nervous, but also because he wanted to avoid Caulifla's gang.

It wasn't a case of them being stronger than him. Is because they were annoying.

"Yo, pipsqueak!"

A child of round appearance appeared before him. He was wearing a pair of sunglasses along a rebellious way of wearing the school uniform. Cabba looked at him without much a care in the world.

"Caulifla sends me."

Cabba's skin started to crawl a little. "What does she want?"

"The sis" he said with some weird mannerism using his hand, "wants to inform you that she requires the notes from today's lesson."

"Again? I already told her last time I'm not going to help her."

The kid started to play with his hand again, first pointing at him mimicking like a pistol trying to shoot him, then clenching his fists with enough strength to make crack noises. He was pretty big, looking like some sort of sumo wrestler.

"I'm telling you pipsqueak, Sis really needs those notes."

"Then tell her to look somewhere else! I'm not his stupid lackey, like you are!"

Something struck him behind his head when he said that. Caulifla appeared behind him, and Cabba could feel his skin crawling in fear.

"You," she pointed at the kid, with an annoyed look on her face, "leave, and bring me a juice for yesterday. Quick!"

The kid ran away like a rat. Cabba's head still hurt due to the smack, but he was more confused on her sitting next to him under the tree.

"S-s-so-r-rry for that. They sometimes use my name to scare some of the kids." she said quite quietly, like if she was suffering from just saying "sorry". "But I got to say, telling him to scram was quite cool. Not bad, pipsqueak."

"I guess, whatever." He tried to look cool, but it wasn't really working as he was blushing out of embarrassment. "Do your homework, please."

She grinned. "Oh, but what you don't have in muscles you have it in the guts, pipsqueak!" He was annoyed at that comment, as she was calling him "bamboo" again subtly. "Besides, it wasn't me who was looking for those notes, it was that guy. I'm going to give him a beating when I'm done with you."

He didn't know if he was happy or terrified to hear that.

"By the way, s-s-so-r-rry for leaving you behind yesterday. I didn't want to see Bro being angry."

"And I had to pay for that, didn't I?"

"Well, Renso has more trust in you than with me." she smiled saying that. "Tell me, did he tell you more about that magical fruit or whatever?"

"I'm afraid not, he simply told me not to tell anyone about it." Then he reacted like struck by lighting, remembering she was there too., "please don't say anything! Renso would stop training me if he heard someone else knows besides us!"

"Don't worry, I won't," She grinned. "Why would I say something that I could have for myself to anyone else? Think, something that makes you stronger! I could participate in the Coliseum by now if I had it on my hands!"

"But you're not going to be part of the Sadala Forces..."

"Yeah, and?" Caulifla remarked, pointing at herself, "don't underestimate me! My brother is a captain, my aunt is a champion, and I'll become the strongest Saiyan ever without the need for titles! I'll find a way, mark my words!"

"You're full of optimism, aren't you?" Cabba asked with a dash of disbelief in his voice. "But, I'll work really hard to join the forces. I'll become an Elite Hero, just like Frost! I'll become the youngest Elite, too!

"That's the spirit, pipsqueak." She hit him in the back with enough force to hurt him. "Say, maybe we'll found each other in that building. I don't think I can wait for the next games!"

"Y-yeah, I guess."

Caulifla then smiled somewhat maliciously. "By the way, I heard that maybe that wimp you idolize so much would go to watch the games alongside the king. Just a rumor, though."

"W-what?!"

When he said that, the kid from before came with the juice box in his hand, sweating nervously. Caulifla stood up and grabbed it without a second thought. It was interesting to see how small she was compared to him, yet who was the dominant force was as clear as night and day. She drank some of it, and what was left of it threw it to Cabba.

"That's for yesterday. See ya later, pipsqueak."

She went her own way, smiling before getting angry at the poor loser who thought could get away with using her name for petty bullying. Cabba was confused but decided to drink the juice, only to regret its bitterness. He appreciated the thought, though.

After school was over, Cabba went running through the seven hours from the capital to his home. One of the teachers asked him if he wanted a ride, but he declined. He ran nonstop, focused only on the goal, with his hair blowing with the wind and his chicken legs moving like wheels; by the time he arrived home, he fainted on his front yard.

It took him 45 minutes.

His pet wanted to help him stood up, but he declined.

"Sorry for worrying you, little guy, but I need to become a hero just like Frost."

With the last of his strength, he opened the door, where his parents were talking with Renso in the room. The moment they saw him exhausted on the floor, they went aid to him.

"Cabba! What happened to you?!" His mother asked.

Cabba ignored her and stood up. With difficulty, he did a salute to his captain.

"Master Renso, sir! I want to become an Elite member of the Force so I can participate in the Coliseum games, sir!"

"You what?!" His mom asked, putting her hand on her mouth. "Are you crazy? Sure, we want you to become a soldier, but just that! Nobody in either side of our family ever attempted joining the games, you will only kill yourself while still a child!"

"I agree with her," Renso said folding his arms. "We were talking just now about the next month payment, about what kind of training someone with your body could handle, and you come with this! Look at your legs! They are trembling out of exhaustion like jelly! You didn't stop at any of the checkpoints? "

"I ran all the way non-stop, sir!"

"You're crazy, son." His father said. He was sitting on the table with his hand on his chest. He was looking completely pale, with restless shadowy eyes, but despite his sickly look, he was pretty ecstatic. "But how long it took you?"

"Around half an hour, father," he replied, with his legs still trembling.

"Nice!" His wife looked at him with a disapproval look. "What you did was dangerous, you could have broken your bones, but, I'm glad you're okay. We're paying your classes, after all, you need to be fine."

"Thank you, sir! I'll run around every day if that helps me become a member of the elite!"

"Are you out of your mind?" His mother yelled, with veins coming out of her head "Is okay if you train some days, but not everyday! Your body will collapse!"

"Then I'll train 6 days a week!"

"No!" both parents replied.

Renso was thinking about what to do. His basic training method was good for non-combatants – Saiyans that aren't capable of fighting due to countless causes, mostly genetic defects like bad lungs – and children from the first rank, but what Cabba did was something teenagers from the second rank are expected to do. After a couple of minutes, he finally opened his mouth.

"Cabba, what you did was insane. To force your body to exhaustion to become stronger is something only soldiers are meant to do in battle, not an apprentice like you just by running. If you want to become an Elite, you will have to follow my instructions to the letter. You understand? I don't want you crying on me."

"Yes, sir! Sorry, sir! thank you, sir!"

While both of his parents were worried about it, Renso accepted to intensify Cabba's training for the following days. He was training as a junior, which was appropriate for mediocre rookies, but if he wanted to be an Elite, he had to intensify his routine. His heart and soul were determined because in his mind, is something Frost would do.

* * *

 **Greetings. I just want to thank you for reading this. I guess Cabba's training at this point is nothing compared to what Vegeta and Raditz had to endure when they were kids, which according to Dragon Ball Super Broly, conquering planets while little kids alongside Nappa and others; but I imagined Sadala training would be more modern compared with Planet Vegeta methods since they are not pirates. Sadala training would be more similar to Roshi's training but with a more military mood. At least Renso is not someone from Fullmetal Jacket; or Piccolo.**

 **I imagined Sadala, instead of having tournaments** – **because let's face it, there is too many of them** – **, has a coliseum where the warriors fight against monsters, for a nice change of pace while still keeping the mood familiar. If any of you find the pun in Lad Sarced, I'll give you a cookie.**

 **Update 14/2/2018: I changed some minor words of the king to keep consistency with later chapters.**

 **Update 28/11/2018: Further updated.**

 **Update 19/03/2019: There were a lot of changes regarding Cabba's parents and tutelage. In the original version, Cabba parents were unremarkable props, but in later chapters, they gained a bit more of an identity. As such, I rewrote their scenes to include their personality traits from later chapters. Likewise, the bully originally was going to shoot an energy shot, but this contradicts a later chapter so he simply threatened Cabba with his fists.**

 **Update 11/09/2019: Further updated.**


	3. Meteor Desert

**No commentary here.**

* * *

 **The one chance! The Meteor desert!**

 **III**

As promised, Cabba followed his master training more closely to the point. He couldn't exhaust his body trying to run but instead, he had to keep focusing on his normal training for the moment. Cabba was annoyed that he couldn't intensify his training now, but Renso told him to wait a little longer. The days passed, school happened without much happening (except for that fat kid from before hanging from his trousers at the top of the school, with regards from Caulifla), and he kept running the same. If Caulifla wasn't lying, Frost would go that year to the Lad Sarced Coliseum event, and if he goes, Cabba must be there too. But not as a mere spectator, but as a leading player, so that his hero – but also the king – could see him.

But it was Saturday, and no news from Renso came. Cabba tried going to his home the days he didn't have any training but didn't found him, only workers from another race building him another chimney. As expected, a captain life is busy. He asked the workers if Caulifla or her brother were there, but they denied this. He was disappointed and went home. When he arrived, he found his little brother with the pet dinosaur on the floor.

"She is sick." His brother said, with a worried voice.

"What? No, she is a he."

"Mama said she is a she."

"Really? But, we had him for three months, now you're telling me he is a girl?"

"Well, mama said so".

Cabba was incredulous. He went to the kitchen to find some medicine and found his father sitting at the table playing cards.

"Good afternoon, father."

"Oh, hello! Did you knew that dinosaur is a girl?"

"I'm noticing. Why didn't we knew before?"

"Well, dinosaurs are hard to know their gender. I swear, I will not get close to a dinosaur's butt to know if they are a boy or a girl, son. I'm not insane. They eat, they poop, for me, is all the same."

"If you say so, father. " Cabba replied with an awkward smile trying to find the medicines. "Here they are! I guess we need to find another name for her."

"Think of something then. By the way, I have some news from Renso."

Cabba's somewhat indifferent attitude then evolved into excitement, the same kind you expect a kid his age would get from eating too much sugar. With his shining eyes, he asked.

"Really?! What did he say?!"

"He said he gained permission to train you in a special place. He will look for you tomorrow before the sun comes out. Rest well, he said."

"A special place? What kind of place?"

* * *

"This place is called The Meteor Desert, Cabba."

Renso took him aboard his hovercar to a giant desert zone of Planet Sadala, surrounded by highly technological towers of the Sadala Defense Force watching over the sky. The place was highly cold, and Cabba was only wearing his junior uniform that had his arms and legs exposed, so naturally, he was freezing. Renso, by comparison, was wearing a uniform that covered everything in his body, including his head. It made him look like some sort of robot.

"Why I'm wearing only this, master?" Cabba asked trembling.

"You are currently in Junior training, that's it, level 1. You want to be an elite, you have to pass 6 more levels. This test is for rank 2 apprentices. Oh, look at that."

A giant blast of purple energy emerged from the center of the desert, going to sky. Cabba, amazed, noticed how the blast hit something in the heavens, causing a small explosion.

"That's possibly a rookie trying to hit a meteor."

"A meteor? Here?"

"Yes. You do know why Saiyans are considered so important to the Empire, Cabba?

"Because we help the weak?"

"Well, yes, but also because we are one of the strongest races in the universe. Thousands of years ago, someone was considered strong enough to destroy one of the moons of the planet. Now, that's peace of cake for anyone on the forces," then his tone changed. "But don't destroy the moon, is a capital crime and it took us centuries to find a new one."

"Of course I won't, sir!" Cabba replied with an awkward smile. "Who would think of destroying the moon?"

"Yeah, well, in order to train new recruits, we bring them here to destroy space rocks like asteroids, meteors, comets, you named it. This place is a mine for space dust."

"So you want me to destroy one of those, sir?"

"Sorta. First, I want you to fly for at least 20 minutes."

"In this cold?!" Cabba screamed with all of his lungs.

"Yes. Do you want a hug? Go! The training started 5 seconds ago!" He started to clap repeatedly. "Go! Go! Go!"

Cabba did a salute, and then concentrated all of his energy to rise from the floor. It took him some seconds but managed to so. _Now, to fly through the_ desert, he thought to himself. Moving took a while to do due to the intense cold he felt on his legs, as he could fly slower than he was able to run. He looked down to see if he could see any of the apprentices trying to hit the meteors, but couldn't see very well. _Considering the giant blast from before_ , Cabba thought to himself, _this first test is to avoid being hit by any of the blasters from the people down there._

A blast from someone was fired from below but was so far he didn't have to worry. His speed was so slow, it was tiring him out to fly by the minutes. It took him 5 minutes to get quickly tired, so he started to fall gently like paper. A blast was shot from behind him, and quickly woke him up.

 _Man, this is the training of an Elite? No, is only level 2, they are truly strong._

"Get aside, slowpoke!" One of the kids screamed at him while passing by, flying quicker than him.

"I'm sorry!" Cabba shouted in response. He noticed how the kid was older than him, possibly six years older. "Man, this is crazy."

He kept flying for at least two more minutes before he started to gently fall again. His eyes were sleepy, not only for the flying but because of the excitement. He could hardly sleep because of the emotion for training, but now, he is regretting everything. He wondered if Caulifla could do this easier, and if Frost ever trained like this. Probably not, Frost was possibly that strong already and his charisma made training obsolete, Cabba thought.

Then, a gentle but bright light touched his eye.

It was the sun. The beautiful sunlight appeared in the distance and motivated him a bit.

 _I can do this_! _I can!_

however, a large blast of energy from below hit him point blank and he fell like a meteor, losing conscience on the way.

It was hot. The temperature felt heavy instead of the usual cold. _Was it noon already?_ He wondered. He opened his eyes, and a giant and heavy steel figure appeared before him, looking directly at the small boy with its bright aquamarine eyes. He made some sort of sounds similar to those of a teapot. When Cabba recovered all of his conscience, he got scared and crawled away from the creature, reaching the rocky wall of the mountain.

"What are you?!" Cabba asked. The creature, however, looked kinda sad by that kind of response. "Oh, hey, sorry if I made you feel bad, it wasn't my intent. Where am I?"

The monster did a _chopopo_ sound and pointed at the pillars. There was a sign there.

 **Danger**

 **Meteor Desert**

 **Don't enter unless you're authorized**

"So I'm still in the desert? I'm glad."

Cabba stood up and looked around, and noticed he was in front of one of the SDF towers, so Renso had to be close by. His clothes barely survived, with his chest naked. He couldn't see behind but was pretty sure he had scratches in his back. He did a reverence to thank the metallic creature. "Thanks a lot, hope to see you again." The creature responded with steam coming out of his head saying its incoherences again, so Cabba assumed it was a "you're welcome" from his part.

He went flying and managed to find his teacher very quickly. He went to him, and thanks to the sunlight, avoiding the blasters easier. Renso didn't react when he came, merely waiting for him. Cabba landed in front of him and did a reverence.

"You're late. I told you 20 minutes. Is 3 hours later."

"I'm deeply sorry, captain," Cabba said while still making the reverence, not seeing his teacher. "I was hit by someone and fell."

"I'm glad."

 _What? Why?_ Cabba thought. Did Renso want to kill him? Then again, his parents told him he could be killed in the Colosseum. _I guess this is the usual experience for the Sadala Elite._

"Thousands of years ago, someone was considered strong enough to destroy one of the moons of the planet. Now, that's piece of cake for anyone on the forces. That's because the Saiyans are a warrior race, capable of growing stronger every time they fight"

Cabba saw him with a shocking look on his face, trembling in fear. That's why this training is about flying with a bunch of blasters shooting at objects in space: so the blast is strong enough to destroy. But how could he recover if he somehow died?"

"Those towers are there for a reason: they have healing tanks for the mortally wounded. The Metal Men are here for helping give some extra weight to help the rookies, alongside construction purposes and finding fallen kids for their recovery."

"You mean... I was dying?"

"No."

Cabba couldn't see his face due to the helmet, but Renso appeared to be smiling.

"What?"

"You fell, but look at you. Your clothes barely survived, but you did. That means you're getting stronger. Think of it as leveling up."

He was surprised by this.

"Captain Renso, sir. It's necessary I fly again?"

"Right now is not possible. You may have survived the blast, but doing it again will be suicide. Besides, the sun is already up, so there is no point in it anymore."

Cabba now understood why the training took place at night: so it could be harder to avoid the blasters, only relying on his senses. This is the training of the elite. _Man, this is hard_. Renso handed a juice box to him.

"Come, you need to properly rest. We will repeat it tonight."

The hours passed by. Cabba and Renso took a rest close to the hovercar, mostly listening to the car's radio. He made sure to bring a pair of extra shirts, so he didn't have to be shirtless for hours. There was music, juice, and a relaxing view, although obviously, the hot temperature was annoying. Well, a "relaxing" view is the wrong choice of words. The view was impressive since every 5 minutes, someone shooted an energy wave to the sky trying to hit a meteor, combining very well with the scenery. Cabba thought of fireworks during New Year, as many of the immigrants from other planets used to celebrate. He didn't notice anyone falling down like him, so that made him feel better.

He noticed how the Metal Man was watching the spectacle too, and even making a castle with the rocks.

"Must be like New Year for him too," Cabba said to himself.

By the time the night arrived, Cabba was prepared for the second round.

"This time, you have to fly 30 minutes." Cabba, however, didn't protest.

His flying, however, wasn't as hard as the first time. In fact, he felt the wind blowing alongside him better than before. When flying, he noticed some kid in front of him and decided to play along, and passed beside him.

"I'm sorry!" Cabba said greeting the kid.

He continued flying, and by the time someone started shooting to the sky, he quickly avoided it without issue. The training was working! He kept flying through the sky until the half-hour passed, and then landed on the same spot as Renso.

"Not bad."

"Thank you, sir." Cabba did a salute.

"During my first time, I fell at least three times. Of course, by that point, I was already a teenager. Not bad, Cabba."

"Thank you, sir." Cabba did a salute again, but this time he felt joy at the moment.

"Of course, this is only the most basic training. Don't think you're level 2 yet. By the way, do you know why those kids are trying to hit those meteors from the ground?"

"No sir," Cabba replied.

"Because is actually harder to shoot to the sky while flying. With your feet on the ground, the attack becomes easier. It sounds obvious, but the point of this training is to train your posture. Want to try shooting to the sky now?"

"Yes, of course! I... I mean, yes, sir!" Cabba did a salute again.

As the captain taught him, he prepared his fighting position. "Look at that one, Cabba! That one is really big! If you shoot right now, you will prove yourself a prodigy." Cabba was excited about this, and made a position with his hands (a complicated one, by the way), starting to release energy.

"Now... shoot!"

"Garlick Buster!" Cabba screamed with all of his strength, releasing his most powerful purple energy blast. He could only do small blasts before in his training, but this time, he was releasing everything he had, going all out, and was excited to be called a prodigy. That meant he could be like Frost!

The blast went up, up, and up reaching above the skies, closer to the asteroids.

it missed.

Cabba was in shock, embarrassed. Any optimism he had gone along that blast disappearing somewhere in space.

"Don't feel bad. You did well. Not everyone can hit one on their first try. Is part of the practice."

The Metal Man did some noise. Apparently, his rock castle crumbled with the released energy.

"I'm sorry!" Cabba said. "I'll help you rebuild it if you want!"

"Do you know this Metal Man, Cabba?"

"Sorta."

Cabba decided to help the Metal Man with his castle. The energy waves were still released into the sky, some of them destroying some asteroids, but not the one he tried to hit. Sadly, his Garlick Buster took all of his energy, so he couldn't release another one for the moment. When he finished, the Metal Man did a reverence.

"Is no problem at all," Cabba replied with his signature reverence. Renso looked at him, kind of worried. Cabba told him not to be.

"Is okay, captain Renso. I may not be a prodigy, but, I promise I'll keep trying. After all, we Saiyans are meant to grow stronger. And I'll keep training to become an Elite, and meet Frost at the Coliseum!"

Renso, however, was confused.

"The Coliseum? Frost? What are you talking about?"

"Caulifla told me Frost would be in the games this year. He will, right?"

Renso however now looked worried.

"Cabba... I don't how to tell you this, but Frost canceled today. He did while you were unconscious through the radio."

And a perfect training turned out to be for nothing. But Cabba wasn't disappointed, on the contrary, he was happier, as he could have more time in order to prepare for the next games in the following years and see his hero. But, the training sessions shall be told at another time.

* * *

 **Author Note: I originally didn't want to include any member of Team Universe 6 besides the Saiyans and Frost, but I thought Auta Magetta appearing would be quite funny. I like him. I had fun imagining the training methods of the Saiyans. I said it wasn't as barbaric as their counterparts, but still pretty hard by us Earthlings standards.**

 **In canon, I highly doubt Cabba met Magetta before the Tournament of Destroyers, but I said: "Ah, what the heck, let's take some liberties."**

 **Sorry if this was a slow chapter, but frankly, I enjoyed writing it. Thanks a lot for the motivation.**

 **Update 27/11/2018: Updated. I changed some words, including "space-ship" for "hovercar". I swear I didn't know about that word before.**

 **Update 04/10/2019: Updated. Did some minor changes.**


	4. Daredevils

**Author note: By the way, the last chapter of the Dragon Ball Super manga has introduced more elements to Sadala's culture. I'm glad it mostly like what I imagined outside of this silly fanfic, except for Caulifla and Cabba never meeting. I guess Renso is an Anime-only character. Still, it means I won't have to start all over again.**

* * *

 **Daredevils**

 **IV**

When he finished his first day at training in the desert, he went excited to his home to tell everyone about it, but when he arrived, all his mother could ask if he was alright. "Yes, I'm ok, mother!", Cabba was happy, but his mother wasn't. His father, however, wasn't surprised about it and told him he did a nice job with a high five, which made his mother gave him the evil eye. His brother was still taking care of the pet dinosaur in the kitchen.

"She is still sick," his brother told him. "I think she is dying."

"No, don't say crazy things," Cabba replied to him hoping it wasn't true, he didn't want to ruin his mood. "Maybe she will have puppies!"

"Puppies?" His brother looked at him with bright eyes. "Are you sure about it?"

"Of course! Right, father?"

He simply nodded.

"Then I will take care of them!" His brother replied with optimism.

The next morning he did his usual five hours running. He tried telling the guards about it, but no one batted an eye. _Oh, man_ , he thought to himself. Even if he didn't know the names of every guard, they were usually kinder. By the time he arrived at school, he was looking for Caulifla to tell her about how he survived a blast and met a Metal Man, but couldn't find her. He asked one of the members of her gang in the classroom, but couldn't get an answer.

"The sis," one of the kid said, making the same kind of hand mannerism the other guy with the sunglasses, "has told us that she doesn't want to deal with the pipsqueaks, you get?" He then pointed at him with his finger. "The pipsqueak annoy her"

Annoyed was he of that guy' way of speaking. They seriously want to start a fight, but will not give them the pleasure.

"All right, thank you for your time." He told them, and went back to his place. _I guess I'm alone for today._

The rest of the hour was pretty dull, as Cabba didn't really talk with the other kids of the class, or was too shy to start a conversation with any of the girls. The instructor was teaching about how the Saiyans and the Frost Empire started to work together thanks to Frost's father, but that was something Cabba already knew. The best fun he had was daydreaming, which was not something that exciting.

By the time of recess, everybody went with their usual group. He walked to the tree and sat all alone, like always. The Coliseum couldn't be seen from that part of the school, only the clean buildings of the Industrial Zone and dirty hovercars passing by. He still felt an itch on his back because of the fall from yesterday but was annoyed he couldn't tell anyone about it. Except, well, he couldn't, because he didn't manage to hit anything in the sky, only learned how to fly better. _Man, how annoying_ , he thought to himself. He really needs some friends to talk to.

"I know! I start a fan-club for Frost!" Cabba muttered to himself. "No, wait, that's stupid. Oh, man..." He seriously needed more hobbies.

Then he looked at the sky again. _I know how to fly better now. But, is forbidden._

 _Was anyone looking at me? Would anyone notice I'm not here?_ Cabba thought to himself, with his heart beating. He has never broken any single rule, except for that one time he ran away from the classroom because of stomach sickness. It was so bad he lost weight, and he was already a really slender kid. He looked behind, and no one was watching in his direction. He closed his eyes, and told to himself: "Just for one time, I'll be the punk."

The school was prepared for suppressing the powers of the kids for their education and to protect the neighbor races from any delinquent, as it had an electrical barrier that blocked any use of energy control. It was almost flawless and was a great tool to capture criminals without killing them. However, Cabba, despite disliking the way of Caulifla's gang of not obeying the rules, was aware of something they knew how to do: how to avoid the barrier. They knew the "flaw" in the almost flawless machine.

Cabba then went directly to the kid with the sunglasses, who was playing with his hand alongside the other members of the family.

"Excuse me." The kid suddenly was afraid. "What's wrong?" Cabba asked.

He then pointed with his finger. "The Sis doesn't want me to talk with you. You bring trouble."

"If you want me to help you with your homework, I can do it, but," and Cabba imitated his mannerism with his hand, even though he felt silly doing so, "I will need a favor from you guys."

The kid was interested. "What does the pipsqueak want, yes?" He asked with a smile on his face.

"I want to get out of the school, at least for some minutes. And you guys know how to. Caulifla taught you how."

"The sis, " he said with his arms crossed, "would kill me if I speak with you, so I'm not taking my chances."

"I'm doing your homework for this week."

"Not sure..."

"The subject of this week homework is the tragedy of The fallen emperor Ize the Wise. You know how much the teacher loves that story, and it would suck if you missed just a detail, which I know all of it."

"How much does he love that story?" the kid asked, incredulous.

"Like Caulifla loves bitter juice."

The kid became convinced with that statement. "Ok, pipsqueak, for a guy made of bamboo you know how to convince a fellow comrade. I'll accept your offer for only this time, just as long as the Sis doesn't know, you get?" Cabba nodded. "All right! I have the right man for you: Zukni, come!"

One of the members came running. He was a tall kid with remarked muscles, a tanned skin, and fearsome eyes. _He is scary_.

"Zukni, the pipsqueak wants to get out of the school, teach him the way, you get?"

Then he suddenly started to cry while keeping a straight face.

"You would run away from school?" his voice was rough, but it was hard to take seriously due to the rain of tears coming out of him while keeping a straight face "I understand, this place sucks."

 _He was scary._

They went to the boy's bathroom on the second floor. "There is a hole below the third toilet, " Zukni said, while still crying with a stoic face. "No one knows how it came to be, but my brother believes it was made by someone who knew the way: the way of breaking the rules."

"Oh, right, I guess." Cabba was having a hard time taking him seriously and was almost giggling.

"And you're just the right size. Only Sis can pass through here."

"You mean Caulifla was here?" Cabba raised his voice, only for the crying boy to shush him up.

"I didn't say anything."

 _This guy is crazy._ He went to the third toilet and found the odor nauseating. _Caulifla is crazier_. He passed through the hole while holding his breath, and kept crawling through it. Two minutes later, he was outside the school, with no one around. He opened his mouth and took a long breath. "All right, just some minutes."

He jumped and started to fly to the Industrial Zone.

...

While he enjoyed the feeling of the wind on his face, he couldn't help but feel his heart beating out of caution. If someone discovered he escaped from school, it would be horrible! He would bring shame to his family's name! But, it was part of the fun. He couldn't get close to the hovercars of the zone: the cars went too fast, even the slower older models. He went flying to the sky, trying to reach the highest altitude possible, but had to stop, as he was having a hard time breathing. He was having more fun than school.

He looked down on the capital. He could see the palace of the King above the hills of Lad Sarced from there. A giant building where the principal tower was watching directly the Coliseum. He didn't know how the king looked like, as he was a very private man, but everyone at school spread rumors about him. Some said he was 20 feet tall and that his power was only comparable to Frost; others said he had a secret daughter. Cabba only knew he was a heroic fellow, as he worked with Frost for many years fighting in wars.

Then, an explosion happened outside the Coliseum.

The alarms started to sound, and the SDF towers to bright all around it. Even though he was flying, his legs started to tremble.

 _An attack? But, who could be attacking?_ He noticed how the vehicles from the army were moving in that direction.

"Want to watch really close, Pipsqueak?"

Behind him, was Caulifla flying with her arms crossed. She was smiling, and Cabba was terrified.

"My name is Bamboo, I want to be a member of the Sadala forces, so for that, I'm going to screw the rules, right?"

"P-please... don't tell the teacher! I just wanted to fly for a while!"

"I won't, I won't. I also know the feeling of just wanting to fly for a while. Feeling free like the wind, without nobody telling me what to do, enjoying a good brawl. It feels good, right?"

"Y-yeah, but you do it all the time!" Cabba said to her. She didn't care. "I only did it this time!"

"You are a goody-two-shoes, you know that?" She looked at the direction where the explosion came from and grinned. "I won't tell anyone you were here, if, you keep me company for the time being. Let's watch real close the show!"

"W-what? But it could be dangerous!"

She then flew really close to him, putting her face just in front of his. He felt nervous.

"Yeah, isn't it exciting?"

He blushed. She wasn't wrong.

...

The area was surrounded by the forces of the militia making sure no one got close to the criminal. The barriers which suppressed the energy from the area were destroyed. The street was surrounded by soldiers knocked down on the floor because of that man. Wearing nothing but pants and a metal mask, the green man was punching the soldiers who were trying to restrain him, to no avail.

"You!" One of the soldiers said. "Surrender, or we will be forced to shoot to kill!"

"Try it!" The green man screamed at them, aiming his arm at them. "If you dare, you apes!"

"Caulifla, I can't see," Cabba told her, as they were inside a cardboard box right in front of the action. It was Caulifla's idea to sneak behind the soldiers with it, as the two of them could fit under it. Naturally, Cabba thought her plan was dumb, but she insisted on it. "Come on, trust in me! I've done it countless times!" she told him, and he sadly couldn't say no.

"Look! Look! That man is beating the hell out of them!" She took away her face from the hole, smiling at the fighting, letting Cabba see the action. The soldiers were trying to incapacitate the green man with their stun weapons, but he was going all out on them. "I was hoping to see them go all out, though. What a bunch of wimps!"

"He is a prisoner Caulifla, not a terrorist." Although Cabba never saw someone with that skin before. "What do you think he is?"

"My, my, I didn't think Namekians could give such good fights". That voice. Cabba saw a woman getting close to the scene with such calm and elegance, capturing the attention of everyone in the street. There was no doubt about it: that gray uniform and spiky hair shaped like a hedgehog, and those earrings in the form of bulls.

"Look Caulifla, is Taura!"

"What?! My aunt?!" She took him out of the hole in order to see better, but Cabba, in a sign of that rebellious spirit of that day, didn't allow himself to be forced off that hole. The result of the small confrontation led to a single eye from the two of them leaking through that small hole. "She is going to kick his ass!"

"You!" The man went running against Taura and tried to strike her down with his fists, but she avoided the punches without any sweat.

"Pirina-boy" Taura replied smiling and with a monotone voice, "I do not take kindly to criminals who would insult my race, now..." She took his arms from behind with enough force that he started to scream from the button of his lungs, "behave."

"I won't allow you to return me there! I won't allow you!" With some struggle, the man launched an energy attack from his hands, trying to hurt her. It simply rosed her, but the attack managed to go to the building behind them, making a giant hole on it. Caulifla was thrilled about it, Cabba was terrified.

"Do you realize that building had innocent civilians?" She put more force, making him scream louder. "You bastard, I will not forgive you this!"

Alongside the screams coming from the man, Cabba witnessed something he was not meant to see at that age: the man arms were straight up ripped by Taura, with purple blood bathing her. Cabba almost screamed, but Caulifla stopped him before he could. "Don't yell!". Many of the men then rushed at the armless man, screaming in pain, giving him a metal collar along the mask. The man then calmed down, as if nothing happened.

"Take him to the cells again. I didn't expect these pirates to be so annoying."

Someone walked directly to her while the men were taking the prisoner: a woman with silver hair, wearing a green uniform similar to the ones from the Forces. She gave Taura a towel, which she accepted without issue and cleaned herself up. She smiled at her. "Thanks for coming." She then looked at the soldiers. "All right you people, whoever was responsible for allowing the prisoner to escape will clean up the Metal Men excrements next morning, find that idiot and bring him to me! You hear?"

"Yes, madam!" Everybody responded.

When everybody left, Caulifla was the first one to leave the cardboard box. She looked at the surroundings but didn't see anyone. "Is okay, you can come out now!"

Cabba, rather shy, left the box. He was scared, with his heart beating more than ever.

"Are you okay? I know it was rough, but..."

"His arms were torn apart... That was torture..." Cabba said, very nervous.

"You didn't hear aunt Taura? He is a Namekian. They are famous for their regenerative abilities! Those guys can regrow their body parts with no issue."

"A-are you sure?"

"Of course I'm sure! When am I in the wrong?"

Cabba then looked at the building. There was a huge hole in it because of that man, but was mostly fine. The lack of soldiers there meant no one was hurt, Cabba hoped.

"Do you think someone got hurt?"

"Can't say, but, is better to not remain here for much longer. Those guys are probably still around."

"Right... Oh my god!"

"What?" Caulifla asked, looking at Cabba tremble like blue jelly.

"I wanted to fly for a few minutes, but ended up missing the class! They're going to kill me!"

Caulifla looked at him with an incredulous face.

"You have no cure, Pipsqueak." She then started to fly, "Follow me then, I can help you give Zanar a good excuse!"

"A good excuse?"

"Yeah, we tell him you had diarrhea again."

"But that's not true!" Cabba screamed, trembling like jelly in an earthquake. "He will know it!"

"Stop whining, considering how slender you are, he will not notice!"

She started to fly. Cabba was still scared, to the point he almost forgot how to fly. It was like before when he had trouble rising from the ground. However, he heard a noise and his instinct returned, following Caulifla without a problem.

When they both arrived at the classroom, Zanar was immensely angry due to Cabba losing the fourth time he has ever spoken of the fallen emperor as a subject, but as Caulifla predicted, he was convinced Cabba was having another case of diarrhea due to his immense problem standing up. Cabba was trembling.

"Cabba", Zanar interrupted the lesson, and looked at him with his soulless glasses, "If you're feeling sick, I can give you the rest of the day."

Zukni started to cry in his seat while looking at the teacher with a straight face. "Why he gets the free pass and we don't?"

"Because unlike you, he enjoys my lessons."

Cabba got out of school with the feeling those guys will annoy him more than ever, but couldn't care less, as he was still traumatized. The arms of that man getting torn apart very slowly by a hero were not something he was meant to see, but keep repeating in his head. He couldn't believe it was possible someone like Taura could do so something so heinous, even if that man arms could regrow if Caulifla was right. He went to his home without following the captain' methods, simply flying faster. He arrived 30 minutes without getting tired like last time.

When he entered his home, his parents were in the kitchen along the pet velociraptor, who was trying to get up but had a hard time doing so. His parents were sort of puzzled.

"Why are you here so early, Cabba?" His mother asked.

Cabba wanted to say the truth to them, but had a hard time doing so, and kept trembling.

"Let me guess: Diarrhea." His father asked with a disappointing look on his face.

"Yes." Cabba bluntly lied to their faces.

"Oh, sweetie. Not again." His mother said annoyed while looking for some pills.

"Is she alright?" Cabba asked while looking at the dinosaur.

"We called the veterinarian, son. She is not going to have puppies."

And the day kept going worse.

...

Despite Renso being occupied for the day, Cabba went to the Meteor Desert. He was holding a bag full of toilet paper just to convince his mother of letting him go. Flying managed to calm him down, but he seriously wanted to talk with someone about what he witnessed and knew of someone he could talk with.

"Hello, friend!" Cabba happily greeted the Metal Man after landing on the floor. The blue-eyes giant greeted him with his train-sounds. _"Choooopo!_ " He was still working on his stone castle. "It's looking better than before, but, why are you still working on it?"

The Metal Man then pointed at the desert, where another Metal Man with red eyes was working on a bigger rock-castle. "Oh, another one. Are you two competing?"

The Metal Man nodded.

"That's cool! Do you need help?"

The Metal Man nodded his head again and allowed him to help. Cabba grabbed a stick and made a river in the sand, surrounding the castle. Then the Metal Man spit on it, making the castle have its own lava river. The Metal Man was quite pleased with this, and so was Cabba.

After finishing, the two sat close to the castle. The Metal Man brought a giant cup made of metal with lava to drank, and he kindly shared some with Cabba, which he refused. After finishing the drink, Cabba, somewhat shy, told him what happened earlier, which made him spit lava in his direction out of the shock, but missed by good fortune.

 _"_ I wanted to tell someone this _,_ but I can't really tell anyone I ran from school just to fly for a while. I'm scared, I didn't expect a hero to do such a thing." The Metal Man released some steam from his body, and carefully put his hand on the child's head. Cabba smiled. "By the way, I still don't know your name, how should I call you?"

The Metal Man did the usual train sounds, which Cabba couldn't understand at all.

"I'm sorry, I don't understand anything you're saying." After a moment thinking about it, Cabba grabbed the stick, and wrote all the letters on the sand. "How about this, I tell you a sound, and it will help me understand your name, all right?" The Metal Man nodded. It took him around 20 minutes, but he managed to found the name of the creature: "AUTA MAGETTA"

"Magetta? That's a cool name!" Cabba said, and Magetta blushed at the commentary. However, something in his eyes changed. Magetta was looking at one of the towers, and out of nowhere, shot a spit of lava in that direction. Cabba freaked out and looked in that direction, and saw a hooded figure running away. His legs started to tremble again.

 _Oh man, who is that?_ Then Magetta got up and started to run to the tower, making noise with every step. He kept shooting his spits in that direction, with the tower barely surviving the shots. _Well, if I'm around him, I'm sure I'll be fine!_ And Cabba went flying to the tower. Magetta stopped shooting, as the hooded figure ran off, and Cabba couldn't see anything on the stone floor of the tower.

He kept looking, and found something: a spiky orange fruit on the stairs of the tower.

Cabba was curious and grabbed it. It was warm and the spikes didn't hurt his hands. Cabba went to Magetta, and asked him if he knew what it was, only for Magetta to deny with his its shoulders. The sound of a door coming from the tower was heard, and Cabba, somewhat by instinct, hid the fruit on his bag along the toilet paper. A soldier came running to them.

"What happened kid?! I was having a nap and the next thing I know we are under fire!" He asked Cabba, like if Magetta wasn't there.

"Magetta saw a hooded figure running around and started to shoot saliva at him, sir!"

"Magetta? The Metal Man here, right?"

"Yes, he saw someone and started to shoot in response. I didn't see it very well."

"Then we must put an alarm. You kid, I'm going to call Renso to pick you up."

"Yes sir!" Cabba did a salute. He was glad he didn't lie again, _only hid the truth._

...

Renso came to pick him up around 10 minutes later in his hover car. It was very late in the night.

"How the hell your mother allowed you to go to the desert without me knowing, Cabba?" Renso asked, quite angry.

"I'm sorry sir, I wanted to train my flying a little bit more."

"That's alright, but this isn't the day to do so, I have to be around. That area is dangerous, if a Metal Man sees an intruder, they will go berserk trying to kill them. Lucky for you, the Metal Man from before knows who you are."

"His name is Magetta, sir," Cabba remarked. Renso was quite curious about that statement.

"Magetta? Did he tell you his name? They are usually very quiet fellows, they only ask for lava from volcanos and they help take care of the planet. Never heard the name of them of one of them, though."

"I asked him his name, sir, with a stick."

"Heh, nice. I'm impressed." Renso smiled at that. The rest of the journey to his home Cabba kept thinking about the fruit he managed to grab. Was it the same fruit Taura was talking about the other day? How did it end up in the desert? Who was that fellow? He kept thinking but couldn't get a straight answer, only a guess.

He didn't know why he was hiding the fruit from Renso. He remembered that the fruit will give you more strength than ever, according to Taura, and Caulifla wanted it to enter the Coliseum despite being young. His heart was beating all over again, he was tempted to touch the fruit again, feel its warm feeling on his hand... but couldn't do it. When they arrived home, Renso asked him what was in the bag, only for Cabba to start sweating all over himself.

"I... well... you see..." He couldn't complete his sentences.

"Do you have diarrhea again?"

"Yes." Cabba blunted answered, feeling terrible for lying to his teacher.

"Too much juice. If you only knew of the stories I could tell you about Caulifla and her obsession with juice. You could laugh!"

"I-I guess so, sir, but I rather not to..."

"Heh, well, you're missing it! See ya later, I have to return to the desert!"

And so, Renso left in a flash. Cabba was somewhat tearful due to being too nervous.

He had the fruit, now, what does he do with it?

He entered his home. His parents weren't in sight, but his pet was. The purple dinosaur was breathing heavily, lying in the kitchen. Cabba went running to her. He touched her skin under the feathers, and she was burning. Cabba wondered for a moment, but he thought of something: the fruit. _Taura said the fruit could increase your_ strength _ten times fold: what if it also heals?_

He grabbed the fruit from the bag and tried to give it to her. The velociraptor resisted it, didn't want to eat it. Cabba had to force her by putting the fruit in her mouth, but she didn't swallow. He then grabbed her mouth in order to make her, and she did. She, however, stopped breathing.

"Please, I don't want this day to get worse," Cabba said quietly to her.

She opened her eyes, and her muscle mass increased more than before. She then stood up and started to walk. The first action she did was to lick his face. She was alive and healthy once more.

"Thank goodness: not everything was terrible this day."

 _..._

 **Author Note: Sadala has a giant moon, and yet these guys lost their tail to become Giant Apes. I guess is a blessing. Apparently, the name of the king is Sadala. Ha! That's a girl's name.**

 **Did I make Cabba too flawed in this chapter? I tried to make him different from Gohan during his school days, where Toriyama tried to give him a personality (A.K.A: comical trait). I wanted to expand a little bit more on his life before the Coliseum. I think this is the right place to stop this fanfic, for now, the end of the first act. The second act shall be more interesting for me to write.**

 **Zukni comes from "Zucchini", and the other guy's name is Mato, from Tomato. The dinosaur previously know as Toyble was inspired by Icarus, but looks more like Dino from the Flintstones. My internet sucked and I had to rewrite a part of the end. How annoying.**

 **Update 27/11/2018: Not a lot was changed, just some typos and badly put terms like "spaceships" for "hovercars".**

 **Update 14/04/2019: Not too many details changed, just some words here and there.**


	5. I made my choice

**Author Note: I originally wrote chapter 4 was going to be the last with kid Cabba. I changed my mind.**

* * *

 **I made my choice**

 **V**

The next morning, he was glad to see the dinosaur was alright, running at top speeds through the mountains. In fact, she was running more than before. His parents were surprised to see her better, sure she was a goner. During breakfast, his mother was quite happy about it, while his father was puzzled by it, looking through the window trying to find the creature.

"I don't get it, she was dying. How did she make it back to life?" He then sat on the table, drinking his beverage alongside a medicine. He looked at his older son. "Are you sure nothing happened, Cabba?"

"No, when I arrived, she was already fine." Cabba lied to his face, feeling an annoyance in his stomach about it. He changed the subject to stop feeling it. "By the way, when I arrived I didn't see you. Did something happened?"

His father remained quiet, drinking with an annoyed look on his face. His brother, who was eating without being in the conversation, then asked the following:

"Where do you work anyway, dad?"

"And you call yourself my son? Why Suybe, I'm the owner of the best spaceships in the country, of course! Everyone knows my name!" Cabba's father said with a proud look on his face, unaware of this kind narrator forgetting his name. "Anyone can travel through space thanks to me! Everyone!"

"Yeah, anyone, including the man who stole a ship from us yesterday," Cabba's mother said without taking away the look from her tea, which made the poor man feel crushed again. The two children, however, were quite surprised about it.

"Someone stole a ship from you? Who?"

"A Namekian, according to the cameras." The man said, still annoyed. "Damn Galactic Patrol! The army told us they took control of the situation with the runaway, but turns out, there were two runaways!" Cabba was listening, with his skin crawling remembering about Taura and her encounter with the Namekian. His brother broke the silence.

"If the army was wrong, why blame the Galactic Patrol?"

"Because those guys can't handle a Namekian! They have a puny power-level compared with the green men, and we have to take care of them in our prisons!"

"That doesn't really explain it, dad," Cabba said. He was unaware of that situation.

"I told them about it, signed some papers, but they told me I should wait a week for a response. What a nuisance, I tell you!" His father was very passionate about his work, so veins could be seen coming from his forehead due to how angry he was. His mother put her hand on his shoulder, trying to calm him down. Suybe was laughing about it, though, which made Cabba put his hand on his brother's shoulder in order to make him go quiet to not bother their father any further.

After finishing to eat, he decided to go running once more but was stopped by the scream of his father. His skin felt cold, like if his blood was frozen over. He turned around and looked at him, who was looking at him through his glasses with a serious look. Cabba wasn't used to seeing him with that expression, meaning he had to listen.

"You're not going to school today. After yesterday, I don't want you to get hurt."

He felt some relief after hearing those words, and couldn't stop himself from smiling, but his father didn't reply with a smile.

"I need you to go with me, somewhere."

...

The journey felt quite slow. While his father loved to talk, he was curiously quiet while driving. Cabba wasn't used to traveling alone with him, as he was always speaking with someone on the vehicle, usually an associate from work from the Tech-Tech aliens.

It was relaxing seeing the scenery pass by without the need of running daily, and noticed how the robbery from the day before was the topic on a giant tv screen on the way to their destination.

The vehicle stopped, and the two got out of it. Cabba was never in that place before, a huge green landscape in a very desolated place, but it didn't take him long to know it was a graveyard. There were many graves, with some having diamonds incrusted on them made from the ashes of their respective fallen. His father kept walking, and without the need of being told, he followed him. They arrived at a small, and humble tomb that lacked a diamond. The following was written on the tomb:

Age 749-770

HERE LIES CABBA  
BRAVE BROTHER AND SOLDIER,  
HIS DEATH SHALL NOT BE FOR NAUGHT

Cabba's skin started to crawl, and his breath became tenser. His father, however, decided to take some cigar from his pocket and to start smoking. He never saw his father smoke before and was unaware of such a habit.

"Father, are you sure you should be doing that? Your..."

"I know my lungs aren't the best, keep silent."

He took the cigar from his mouth, and put it between the tomb, making sure the top of the cigar didn't touch the ground. He then sat on that spot.

"Here lies your uncle, my older brother." His voice was calm while looking at the tomb. It was clear he hasn't been in that place for a long time. "I told you that our family has this tradition where the oldest kid has to serve with the forces. Well, your uncle followed that tradition, and look where he is now."

Cabba looked at the tomb. The wind was blowing. He only heard of his uncle in small conversations but was never aware of his fate. Now, he was just above his corpse.

"Renso told me you survived a blast in the Meteor Desert. While impressive, we couldn't help but worry about your safety, but you were so excited about it that we couldn't tell you anything. Look, your mother and I aren't fighters like him, I know Renso is a good man, his father served during the wars and all, but still..."

"Dad, thanks for worrying about me..."

"Hey, I trust in you, but I must ask you: are you really sure you want to enter in the Coliseum games? I'm telling you, the Elite members are not easy, especially for someone of your size, and the creatures you may face can put your life on the line. Is a tradition, but, it can be bend to make it less life-threatening."

The wind kept blowing on the peaceful surroundings, and Cabba couldn't really think of an answer. He thought of the uncle he never knew, and how it was possible his own name was in honor of him. He couldn't think about what situation his uncle perished. He didn't want to die in vain, but on the other hand, he could only think of one thing: to be a hero like Frost, to bring pride to his people; to bring pride to his family.

"Yes dad, I'm sure of it. Even if it takes me forever, I'll make sure to become the youngest elite! I will bring pride to our family, I swear it on my uncle's name!"

His father didn't smile, simply closed his eyes in response. He was worried, Cabba knew that.

"If that's the case, then I have nothing to say but good luck son."

And so, the days became weeks, the weeks became months and the months years, where Cabba kept training on his way to becoming an elite soldier. By the time he was allowed to enter in the games, he was 13 years old.

* * *

 **Author Note: You know, writing this chapter made me realize why a lot of fictional kids in manga, anime, and cartoons only have one parent: because it saves the writers from writing more characters. I think this is a better way to say goodbye to Cabba's childhood than the last chapter, so I apologize for delaying the games.**

 **In chapter 1, I wrote that Cabba was following a family tradition. I thought it would be cool to explore a little bit more on his family story, even if the chapter itself was brief.**

 **Thank you again for reading. If you see any mistakes, please correct me, and I'll fix them right away!**

 **Update 27/11/2018: Fixed some minor typos.**

 **Update 13/04/2019: Added some small changed to the chapter to foreshadow future events.**


	6. Hall of champions

**Author note: For this chapter, I try changing perspectives a little. Tell me what do you think.**

* * *

 **The Hall Of Champions**

 **VI**

By the time she opened the door, he was already awakened. She wanted to make noise with the frying pans, but was surprised to see his son already up, sitting on the bed watching the window. He looked at her, and she didn't see any sign of him being tired, on the contrary: his sharp black eyes looked quite refreshed, and his smile was of someone without grief or doubts. "Morning", he said, and she wasn't sure of what was she suppose to say.

"Did you sleep at all?"

"Yes, of course." He got off the bed and started to jump on the floor, quite excited about it. By contrast, she was still quite sleepy. "Do you need help with making breakfast?" Cabba said while still smiling.

"No, is ok, sweetie. Today is Saturday, I believe is time for running through the neighborhood. Could you do it?"

"Yes, of course!"

Even though the sun hadn't come out yet, there was a bright mood in the kitchen. Cabba was stretching with enthusiasm while she was making her coffee in order to work. She sat at the table, and couldn't help but wonder how... little he grew in the last years.

"You are quite small, aren't you son?"

He was visibly offended but didn't say anything out of respect. He did grow, now he reached her stomach, but he still looked like a child. She wasn't sure if it was because she was her mother and couldn't tell or something else. Nevertheless, she enjoyed his presence.

"Are you excited?"

"Yes, I am! After I run for a while, I'm going to see the captain!"

"That's good to hear, remember to return so you can eat something."

"You bet I will... madam!"

Her son then went up running through the mountains, and she could see how the nameless dinosaur and its offerings following him. They never managed to find a substitute to Toyble as a name. She opened her computer and started to write, trying to focus on her work. She touched the buttons trying to think away from her son, and wrote the headline for the article:

 _ **AFTER A LONG WAIT, THE EMPEROR ARRIVES AT THE GAMES**_

 _ **By Ghai Ian.**_

 _Today, the Lad_ Sarced _games celebrated every year start once again, but this is hardly the only surprise. After years of promising his visit, the emperor of the universe Frost will finally join us in this event. The Emperor, in an interview with many reporters, has stated that due to his busy schedule in the war against the pirates led the by the infamous Lusk couldn't visit the games here at Sadala. However, thanks to the capture of Lusk, he can finally join us on this day._  
 _As always, the games take place at the Coliseum, founded by the royal family in the year 30 of the new era, where members of the army will participate fighting against creatures from other races. This year creature is said to be a surprise compared to last year_ Arlians _._

And she failed to stop thinking about the subject. Working as a reporter for the government wasn't easy. Because of the political influence, she needed to write every time Frost was involved, which annoy her to an extent due to how perfect the guy was. She had more fun writing about the countless criminals he fought against, but couldn't work on that kind of stories because they didn't pay her for it. She simply shrugged, and kept writing. By the time she finished, Cabba returned.

"You arrived earlier. Did you really run that much?"

"I ran the same as always. The sun is already there."

And she noticed it was true by the light in the kitchen, and felt a little embarrassed for not noticing.

"I'm sorry, could you prepare the breakfast for today? I sort of forgot."

"Is alright."

He did so, and by the time he finished his brother Suyve appeared, still heavy sleepy. "Morning!", he said with trouble speaking, and wearing earphones, and sat on the table. Mis mother also greeted him, and Cabba put the food on the table. "Hiya bro, are you ready for today?"

"You bet I am. Say, why are you wearing earphones?"

"I am?" and he touched them surprised. "I didn't notice them when I went to sleep."

"You sleep with those?" His mother raised her voice, incredulous. "Are you crazy?"

"Sorry, madam!" He said, smiling. "I wanted to capture the waves!"

"Unbelievable. Cabba, are you going to wait for your father to awake, or you want me to take you there?"

"I wouldn't mind if you take me, madam!" He said in almost a military voice while still eating his bread.

...

They arrived at Renso's home in around 20 minutes, and his mother left in a hurry. When Cabba got off the vehicle, he noticed a girl with hair shaped like a hedgehog in the front yard, wearing very little clothing, just a pink top, and purple pants, sitting atop the remains of a tree. She was eating a giant piece of meat without a care in the world.

Cabba wanted to greet her, but was nervous around her. He walked straight through the front yard without doing so, but was stopped by her sarcastic remark.

"Is that how you greet someone, Pipsqueak?"

"Greetings, my name is Cabba. How you doing, Caulifla?"

"I'm surprised they finally decided to let you participate in the games. You still look like a sack of bones to me." She said while still eating her meat. Even after years, she still had that nasty attitude of hers, and Cabba knew how to respond to that: ignoring it. After all, she wasn't that different from him, as she was pretty slender herself. He walked to the door and knocked, and was greeted by his captain almost in a flash, who was wearing the uniform of an elite. The uniform, unlike most soldiers variations, is of a gray color, and Renso's variation didn't let his skin exposed.

"Hey, I'm glad you're here! I was preparing... Caulifla! What are you wearing? Wear some proper clothes, we are going to the games!"

"I'm not going, bro!" She screamed back at him. "This year games are going to suck!"

"What are you talking about? Your big brother will participate, and so will Cabba!"

"Why do you think I'm saying it?" and she took another bite of her meal. Renso was annoyed.

"You are a pesky runt, aren't you? Fine, do whatever you want you nuisance, but don't come with me crying like nothing!"

"Don't mistake me for boney beside you!"

Cabba felt awkward about it, as the two kept screaming at each other for a short while. Renso was ashamed of himself, so he stopped screaming while inviting Cabba inside the home.

"I'm really sorry for that. I don't know where that attitude of hers come from. Anyway, despite what I promised, you will not enter into the games just like anything. The doctor will first do some test to make sure you have the potential. Don't worry though, you don't have to be buff, just be capable."

"Yes, sir!"

"Yes, and besides that, I have something prepared for you today." He went to the table of the room, and brought a rectangular box with him. "This is the uniform for the Sadala forces, and you will need to wear it once everyone watches over you on the games. "

With a touch of shyness and excitement, Cabba received the box. He didn't know how to react, as he wanted to scream in excitement, but he had to endure that sensation. He bowed to his captain in respect, trying to hold his emotions. Renso did a sign with his hand pointing to the bathroom, and Cabba went there to change his casual clothes for the proper uniform.

The clothes and shoes were small, just the right size for him. He put them on and looked himself in the mirror. The blue uniform and the comfortable size of the armor really suited him, although he still didn't understand the purpose of the purple piece of the uniform, other than to match the purple shoes and "symbolism", or why his arms and legs weren't as protected. The armbands were comfortable, and he felt lucky wearing those.

He got out of the bathroom, with Renso waiting in the room.

"Now that's the style of the forces. Tell me, do you understand why the beginners use blue?"

"Yes, I know! -Cabba couldn't contain his excitement- Is the color of the royal family, and these purple thingies are to match their shield. As soldiers, we represent the will of the royal family."

"Pretty good, just like an encyclopedia, except for the "purple thingies", they have a name you know..."

"Once the soldiers are promoted," Cabba continued talking like a small blue parrot, "the color of their uniform change from gray, pink and green, to represent different things: gray to loyalty to the kingdom; green for loyalty to our comrades; and pink to loyalty to the people."

"Well, yes, you didn't need to extend yourself. I know you're excited, but calm yourself."

"Yes sir, sorry sir!" Cabba shouted, failing at overreacting.

"Is only a color, after all, is not a big a deal."

"Not a big deal?!" Cabba screamed. "Every color must represent something! The army establish them in order to distinguish the common from the elite! Isn't that right?"

"Cabba, quiet." Renso told him in a subtle menacing voice. Cabba didn't say more, as that voice scared him.

The door was open with force, and Caulifla appeared. She looked at Cabba, and started to laugh.

"What's with those clothes?" She said while still laughing. "I didn't think you would wear pajamas for the games, Pipsqueak!"

"This is the uniform of the strongest army in the universe, Caulifla!" Cabba shouted, and hardened his fists in anger.

"Yeah, I can totally dig you as a total badass with those legs, dude." She said while still laughing, pointing at his exposed legs. Cabba blushed, not knowing what to say.

"So you will not come with us, Caulifla?" Renso asked with the same menacing tone from before. Unlike Cabba however, it didn't appear to have any effect on Caulifla.

"Nah. I'll watch it with a friend in his place. I don't want to be along so many stinking people in the audience."

As nasty as that commentary was, Cabba actually agreed with her. There was nothing more annoying than watching the games with the audience. The combination of sweat, odor, and screams was possibly the only thing he didn't like about seeing the games, but this time, he won't be in the seats. Renso let her be, and the two went to his ship to go to the Coliseum.

...

Arriving at the Coliseum, Cabba saw many people excited for the arrival of the emperor, from the poor, to the ones selling junk, all from many different races, not only the Saiyans. There were posters with Frost face on the walls, and Cabba noticed Taura's poster was still above the entrance, where she had her arm raised to the sky along with some woman, although Cabba felt he saw her somewhere before. He wasn't used to seeing so many different races, as the annual games were popular with the Saiyan crowd, but not so much with everyone else. Some of the people even stopped to look in his direction, but deception was shown. Renso put his hand on his shoulder.

"They are also excited waiting for the Saiyan veterans, so I'm afraid they will not put a lot of attention to the newcomers." Cabba was disappointed, but couldn't do anything about it. They walked to one of the giant doors, guarded by some soldiers. The two soldiers greeted Renso with the respect a captain deserve, doing a salute to him. One of them, however, was confused after seeing Cabba.

"Hey kid, this isn't a place for fans, you will have to enter through the central door."

"This is my apprentice, soldier," Renso said, with his subtle menacing tone. The man looked at both of them confused, like he wanted to say something but quickly shut himself. The other man, however, greeted Cabba.

"Yeah, this is the kid who ran all the way from the mountains to the city almost every day. He always stopped for a while in my checkpoint. Nice to see you kid."

"A pleasure to see you, Bean." Cabba greeted him, glad someone remembered him.

Once they entered the building, his master came real close, and very quietly asked him:

"You know the name of that guy? I'm impressed by it."

"Yeah, of course. When I become an elite, I have to remember the name of everyone, right?"

Renso laughed between teeth.

"Is not really necessary, but I'm not going to criticize you for it. I didn't even remember the name of that guy was Bean."

"He was always speaking about how great his girlfriend from another planet was, but could only speak with her through the space web."

Renso laughed.

"That poor guy. Let's hope he meets her one day. Oh, look who is here."

The hall of champions was quite big, and there were some soldiers on it. Most of them were rough looking men, but there were four females among them too. One of the men wearing a green armor and some yellow goggles on his eyes shouted Renso's name and greeted him with a handshake. The arm of the man was quite big and muscular.

"Renso! Old buddy, what are you doing here?"

"I came to participate of course! What the hell do you take me for?"

"Let's hope you don't embarrass us like last time!" the man started to laugh, and then noticed Cabba. He was quite huge, with Cabba not even reaching his waist. Cabba bowed to him in a sign of respect. "Who is this little child? Is this your son?"

"No, is my apprentice. His name is Cabba. Cabba, this man is Cress, one of the champions of the Coliseum."

"Oh! I know!" Cabba said, with excitement like the little kid in class who knows the answer to a question, "you defeated the Arlian last year! You gained the silver medal!"

"Well", Cress started to cough, "yes, I did defeat the Arlian, and became the champion of course!"

"But you couldn't top your ex-wife record," Renso said laughing. Cabba was surprised to hear the "ex-wife" part.

"You were married to miss Taura?"

"Eh, yes. Let's not talk about it, can we?" Cress said, ashamed of himself.

When he said this, a man of an insectoid appearance went to their direction. Cabba recognizes him: it was an Arlian, like the one Cress faced last year. The man spoke to Cress in some tongue he couldn't understand, and Cress replied in the same language. The man left, and Cress, like knowing Cabba was confused, decided to speak.

"He is my butler. Listen, kid, when you become an elite, you gain some benefits: admiration, money, and even followers who agree to serve you. That man became my butler when I helped liberate an Arlian country from an oppressive king."

"I see! That's cool! I hope to fight alongside you in the games!"

Cress smiled and went back to its place, and Renso put his hand on Cabba's shoulder. "I'm going to see the doctor so he can see you, wait for me."

He went, leaving Cabba sitting all alone in that spot. The room was filled with photos of soldiers who entered the games. There was Taura as the champion of course, with her spikier hair in the shape of a hedgehog taking most the picture. Cabba still felt uncomfortable due to the brutality he did with the Namekian years ago, and hoped to not see her close; Cress and the Arlian creature in their photo, and he could notice how his goggles were identical to the creature eyes; Renso, who unlike many others in those pictures merely had a bronze medal, making Cabba feel a little bit of pity. Many more people were there, including Lord Sadala, Vidal, Esparra, and many others.

Cabba noticed that more people were entering the room, including young apprentices like him along with their masters. Not a single one of them looked as young as him though, except for one of them: a girl. She was with a grown man with white hair, and by the look of his armor it was easy to think he was a soldier, but he couldn't be sure. The girl wore a ponytail and green goggles with a set of earrings, and a green uniform. Cabba found it odd, as she looked too young to be an elite member.

Cabba, with a dash of curiosity and the course of being a gentleman, decided to greet her from his seat.

"Greetings!" She looked at him, sharing said curiosity. "I'm glad to see someone my size around. Let's fight along in the games!"

The man stood between them, with some disdain in his eyes. Cabba saw him better to notice he wasn't a Saiyan, as he had pointy ears and a red stone in his forehead. He spoke with a harsh tone, almost speaking between coughs.

"The young miss name is Vidalia, from the Onion family. She was trained to be a member of the elite, don't put yourself in the same position as her, low-class plebeian."

Cabba skin started to shake out of surprise. _Wow, what is his deal?_ He thought to himself, offended. The girl, however, did a sign with her hand, and the grown man, possibly her butler, kept quiet. They walked to the room where Renso got out, as he returned to sit alongside his apprentice.

"Sorry to keep you waiting, but the doctor told me to wait until he is finished with the "special" cases."

"Master Renso, who are the Onion family?"

"Who? Oh, you mean those guys that just entered? They are just some elitists. I think their matriarch is a distant cousin of the queen, making them believe to be better than anybody. Don't mind them, they are just looking for an excuse to be arrogant with their status."

"If you say so," Cabba said, but deep down he still felt offended. _What kind of name was "Onion", anyway?_

Twenty minutes later, the girl and her butler got out of the room and walked to a corridor. Renso touched his apprentice shoulder, and Cabba knew what he had to do.

He walked into the room, and inside there was the doctor checking a giant computer. The man was wearing a white coat, and Cabba noticed his ponytail. _Must be popular to wear those these days,_ he thought. Otherwise, he didn't look old at all.

"Greetings, you must be Cabba. Nice to meet you, I'm doctor Yarrow. I'm here to see if you are qualified to enter into the games." The man searched through the pocket of his coat, and pointed a ray-gun at the young Saiyan. Cabba instantly panicked and screamed when he saw the weapon pointed at him.

"What are you doing?!"

And the man pulled the trigger. Confetti came out of the weapon while a flash of light came from the machine. For a minute Cabba thought he was a goner, as he started to tremble with his eyes wide open. The man stoic expression didn't change at all.

"Sorry for that, the computer needed to analyze your emotional reaction. Now, why don't you take a seat?"

 _What is wrong with people? I almost had a heart attack here_. With his heart beating like a train, Cabba did as he was told in the white table.

"The ray gun is for security purposes. Saiyans may be powerful enough to take down a planet, but they are still biological creatures. These ray guns shoot poisonous electric needles that penetrate any kind of skin, and give a tactical advantage, even if brief. Just if you wanted to know that, young one. Anyway, lie down for a moment please, the computer will see your fighting capacity."

Cabba did so, and allowed the machine to scan him. Lying down, he felt relaxed, watching the lights of the machine it was like some sort of videogame. He felt sleepy too. The time passed, however, and the doctor told him to get up, which greatly annoyed him. _I was feeling great just a minute ago._

The doctor watched the computer screen in complete silence. Cabba couldn't tell what he was thinking since his face hardly emote. He put his hand on his chin, thinking. Some moments passed and he finally spoke.

"You don't meet the criteria." _  
_

Cabba's eyes opened after hearing those words, and with trouble saying it, he asked: "what? Why?" _  
_

...

"Your body appears to lack any form of extraordinary attributes. It's healthy but fragile; strong, but small; with some power, no doubt born from intense training, but without any sign of being impressive in any area. You're simply average, young one, and I don't think you should participate."

The young boy in front of the doctor had his head low, no doubt disappointed, maybe tearful. Yarrow kept looking through his computer and noticed something.

"Although, I must say... there is something odd about you."

Cabba head raised, and looked at the doctor, with something resembling hope in his eyes.

"I will tell you a little secret. Every Saiyan we check has... "something" normal about them, but there are special cases. A long time ago, I checked a patient with this same oddity in their body too. Is something that our computers can notice, but they can't tell what it is. The girl who just left had the same oddity."

Cabba was confused about this statement from the doctor, as he couldn't understand what he was talking about, or what he and Vidalia had in them.

"What do you think it its, mister?"

"I'm not sure, I told you. But it doesn't appear to be anything malign or even benign, as that old patient lived normally until he died in battle. That's why telling you about this is not something dangerous for my career. Is just an oddity in your body."

"You mean I can't participate in the games, sir?" Cabba said, hoping for the doctor to say he can. The man looked at him with the same annoyed look on his face.

"I said I don't think you should, not that you can't."

* * *

 **Author Note: I imagined Frost was seen as a Superman figure through the universe, so I had fun imagining Cabba's mother as a cynical Lois Lane, although less a Pulitzer winner and more of an annoyed woman trying to earn a living.**

 **Cress name comes from watercress.**

 **27/11/2018: Fixed some minor typos.**


	7. Totally Metal

**Author Note: I'm trying my best to do a fight scene narration, although unlike the Tournament of Power, the focus is smaller and easier to follow.**

* * *

 **Totally Metal**

 **VII**

When he got out of the door, he found his master waiting for him at the hall. He was getting rid of his ponytail, allowing Cabba to see a spikier mane.

"So, what do you think? Doesn't your captain look like he is about to rock out?"

"Ah, yes, Captain." Cabba lied. In honesty, Renso looked like a complete utter dork. He looked less like a soldier and more like a poor costume of a lion, with his big nose being a distraction. Although Cabba could now look his similarity with Caulifla, as both had the same kind of hair.

"I knew you would understand it! Is been a while since I last fought in battle, caring too much about the paperweight was tiresome!" He said quite happy about himself. Cabba could only think he was acting and looking like a complete utter dork. "By the way, what did the doctor told you? Can you participate?"

"Yes, I can. Although, he did say I shouldn't participate. He says my body is not exceptional at anything."

"I see," Renso said, looking at his him with his arms crossed. "The people who enter in the games are the best of the best, the exceptional, the elite, so is not usual you see normal rookies to participate. The rookies who enter tend to be from known families, but most of them get rejected anyway."

While Cabba was able to participate, he couldn't help but feel somewhat helpless to hear such words. It was like all the time he invested into training for years were for naught, as he was going to be overshadowed by everyone else. Everyone would think of the eight times champion who worked directly with Frost, or the second place which fought alongside the Arlians in a war. Even a delinquent was better than him since they were toddlers. By contrast, he was just a kid, with no exceptional abilities except for some vague oddity or even a family name to hold into. He was normal, he was average, he was simply Cabba.

Renso, like if he was capable of reading minds, pointed at him with his finger, like he was about to shoot him.

"Don't put that face! If you are here, is because you are exceptional, and don't let anyone tell you the contrary! The doctor said you can participate, didn't he? Well, stop crying like a pansy and put a warrior's face!"

"Yes!" Cabba said, quite shocked to see his captain acting as excited as that.

"Yes, what? You swine!"

"Yes, sir!" Cabba said doing a salute.

"Good! Now... let's try to not get yourself killed" Renso said with brutal honesty.

...

They walked through the hall and reunited with the other fighters who the doctors gave the good eye. Cabba was surprised, as of all the people he saw in the halls before, only seven were there, excluding them of course. The man with the insectoid goggles, Cress, was there, and so was the young girl with the ponytail and the green uniform, Vidalia. The rest of the fighters were completely unknown to Cabba, but none of them were as young as him. Three adult females, and two males, one of them a teenager. One of the girls was wearing a pink armor, while the rest were the standard blue.

"Ah, I see you guys made it!" Cress said to them, quite cheerful about it. "Oh, especially you kid. I thought you would get rejected, but color me surprised: two kids participating" he said while looking at Vidalia. "When was the last time? When Taura and your father participated, Renso?"

"Ah, yes, I think." Renso smiled quite awkwardly. "Is because I'm a great teacher, of course!"

A chuckle was heard from them. Renso, visibly furious, shouted:

"Hey, who is laughing? Do you have anything to say to me?"

None of them replied, but Renso could hear footsteps coming from behind them. A woman, wearing a gray uniform and a spiky hair shaped like a hedgehog was arriving, and all of the people there stood in silence, except for one of the girls making a brief squee of excitement, but Cabba couldn't see who she was. Cabba noticed Taura changed the way she was dressed, as she never wore tights before.

"Greetings, everyone! Glad to see some familiar faces here... and some new faces. " Taura said looking at both Cabba and Vidalia. "Cabba-boy, glad to see you made it. I thought Caulifla would beat you in entering into this." She said, grinning.

Cabba wasn't happy to see her. He still remembered the torture she gave to that Namekian fugitive all those years ago, and even remembered the day she went to Renso's home to talk about that mysterious fruit. Cabba wanted to call her on it, but couldn't think of anything. Besides, if Taura discovered he found said fruit in the desert and used it, he would get into trouble with her and the squad interrogating him. He had been hiding those thoughts for a long time, not allowed to say it with anyone, and frankly hated it.

"What's wrong? Why the long face?"

"Is just... I'm thirsty, that's all." Cabba lied to her face.

"Jeez, you kids don't change at all, do you? Oh, and who is the young lady? Why is she wearing the uniform of an elite?"

The girl stood quietly. The woman of pink uniform went in her direction.

"The champion has asked you a question, you brat. Say something!"

Vidalia looked at them, quite annoyed.

"I'm... wearing it... because I can." Her voice was quite deep, and she looked like she had trouble speaking. "After all, my family is rich, and I'm... already prepared for when I beat you as the champion."

A large gasp from all of the people in the hall resounded the hall. "How dare she!" said the same pink-uniform lady.

"You have a lot of guts." She grinned. "I like that, but, unless you prove me the new generation of Saiyans is worth the time, you will be no different from a filthy dog that doesn't even bite."

She then looked at Cabba, and he knew the message was for him too. Cabba hardened his fists, something about her just wasn't right, he could tell, but, who would believe him? Vidalia, however, didn't look scared, in fact, she looked quite confident.

"And by the way, Renso, you look ridiculous with that hair." And the smile of Renso face was taken away "Anyway, to all of you, I tell you: these people came here to see us, hell, _the emperor_ came to see us, so, put on a good show. I'm sure this day will be unforgettable."

The gates opened, and the warriors walked to the arena, where hundreds if maybe thousands of people were watching them. Cabba felt smaller than usual and something in his stomach was shrinking. Many people of different races were watching him, watching them. He looked, but didn't see any familiar faces in the hundreds of faces of the crowd. _I wonder if mom and dad are watching from there._

The arena was quite vast in space, with a giant gate in the four corners. Many of the creatures that came from out of it were massive, and took the life of many soldiers in the past.

"Ladies and gentlemen!" said the commentator above the crowd, a green-skinned alien of short stature, "welcome once again to the Lad Sarced Coliseum! I'm your commentator, name's Das, by the way, don't forget it, coming here by the hand of Lord Sadala himself to present to you this year games! And I'm here to present you the many brave warriors from the Saiyan race to fight against other powerful races!" the crowd was excited, as Cabba could see.

The people around him were pretty calm, all things considered, even Vidalia. How can someone as young as her be so calm about it? He was excited, sure, but she didn't even emote. _What is her deal?_ "These brave warriors are led by the eight times champion Taura, give her an applause" and the people did so like they were a bunch of seals, and Cabba noticed there were actual seal-like people in the crowd. "She has fought alongside the great and powerful Frost during the war over the years, and speaking of him, give another applause for your highness, the Great Frost!"

And the people started to scream like crazy, as Frost descended from the heavens, flying above the giant coliseum. Cabba felt excited about seeing his hero above him after so many years. _Is really him! Oh great, I hope he sees me!_ The emperor was a lizard-kind humanoid of white and blue skin, with crimson eyes. He kept flying for a few moments until the crowd calmed itself down, and he started to speak.

"Good! Good! I have returned, after an eternity away from you all, your dear emperor is back! This arena represents all that is great in my beloved Saiyans: a fighting spirit, and a heroic will! When the king asked me to take his place for this event, I felt quite ashamed, and I kindly asked him to reconsider, after all: I'm just a humble servant compared to the king." And the people kept praising him from the seats, "but he insisted, and I had no other choice but to accept." Frost then pointed at the palace atop the mountains, where the king was no doubt watching. "For you, my dear friend, I dedicate these games to you!"

And the people, predictably, applauded in response. Frost then descended to a special seat in the middle of the crowd, where the king usually seats. Despite not being guarded by any personal bodyguard, the people around him were scared of him as silence happened. He then looked at one little girl in the crowd, and pointed at her with his finger, and asked her to get close with said finger.

The little girl, really shy, walked to him, and Frost then politely put his hand on her head. "But most of all" Frost said in the silence of the Coliseum" I dedicate these games to the children, including the many orphans I personally brought to enjoy this event. Please, give them an applause."

And the people replied with the same fervor as before. The people really loved Frost, and Cabba couldn't doubt it. "What an honorable man, ladies, and gentlemen!" the commentator said, "With his presence, the games shall never be forgotten!"

"And my good man" Frost interrupted, seeing the commentator, and everyone stood quietly at the sound of his voice, "I would love to participate alongside you in talking about the fights if you don't mind."

And the people cheered on again.

"It will be a complete honor, sir!" and the commentator went running through the crowd, even hitting against some people, to reach Frost. "Tell that guy Brad to suck it, I'm at the top of my game now!" And then the commentator noticed what he said and bowed in sign to apologize to the emperor. "Forgive me for my arrogance, sir!" The emperor, however, merely chuckled.

"Don't be. I'm sure Brad is envious of you now."

And the audience laughed.

"Thanks to your highness! Well people, is the time we present the rules of these games. The match will have a time limit of one hour where the fighters will have to face creatures from other worlds, and the judges, which includes your highness and me, will determine who gets the most points. If any soldier is mortally wounded, the battle will pause in order to take them out of the arena, so be careful!"

Cabba heard the words of the doctor about his body being strong but fragile. _I better keep my distance, otherwise, I may end up dead_.

"Last year, the Arlians were a surprise from the judges. This year, however, the judges thought it was better _to heat_ the situation." And Cabba noticed how something about the air started to change. It was hotter, and he started to sweat. _Why is it so hot in here?_ Then, a green light started to surround the arena, creating a barrier.

"This is a protection mechanism in order for you to avoid the heat. But don't lose your sight, cause the situation is _totally metal_!"

And the gates opened, and from the darkness came steam, and the whole arena felt like an inferno. Cabba, sweating like a pig, noticed a small light coming from the dark, and metal steps could be heard walking in their direction. Three giant walking robot-looking figures with small bright eyes appeared around them.

"Magetta!" Cabba shouted at the surprise of seeing his old friend in there.

"And here they are folks, the Metal Men!"

"Ho ho ho! Good! This shall be interesting to see!" Frost shouted, quite excited.  
...

His mind went all buzzy for a minute, remembering a time he was on the Meteor Desert trying to hit something on space. He has been training for years there but wasn't able to land a single blow through neither an asteroid or a meteor, with someone else landing the blow. Every time he shouted, an airwave was released from his spot, crumbling Magetta's rock castle.

"I'm so sorry my friend!" Cabba shouted at the Metal Man, who simply told him to relax. While Cabba couldn't understand him verbally, he did manage to learn what he was trying to say, like speaking with a deaf person. "Do you need any help with that castle of yours?"

"No, don't worry," Magetta said with his hand. Cabba, who was tired of blasting too much of his energy, walked to his direction and sat on a rock close to his metal friend.

"Would you care if I ask you why you want to build that rock castle so much? I've been here for a while, and you're always working on it."

"Yes, I will," Magetta said with his hands.

"If I told you why I want to hit something in the sky, would you tell me?"

Magetta denied with his head.

"If I tell you a secret? A secret so secret, not even my family knows about?"

"Maybe", Magetta said with the look.

"Well, I want to be an elite because of the chance of seeing new worlds, of course! New people and the prestige to my family, and the adventure... but also, "and Cabba blushed with his hands crossed" because I like this type of romance novel I tend to read about."

"What?" Magetta asked in _Choo-_ po _-_ po sounds. He then started to laugh, which made Cabba red like a tomato.

"Yeah, laugh all you want, but I told you something very personal. My favorite novel is _Love of the Shooting Stars,_ by the way, about a dorky young soldier who meets a shy girl, but there is the fact she is possessed by an evil spirit! -Magetta didn't look surprised at the plot, so Cabba crossed his hands again- I hide it from my mother behind a Frost poster. Now is your turn."

Magetta didn't say anything for a moment, but then threw a series of punches through the air.

"You want to be a fighter?"

Magetta nodded.

"So you need to build this stone castle so you can fight?"

Magetta nodded.

"Sounds odd to me, but you can count on me to cheer you up, all right?"  
...

His mind returned to the present, where he had to face his friend in battle, alongside two of his metal comrades. He prepared himself with the battle position he was taught, with his arms raised and a slightly crouched back. He saw the others do the same, with the exception of Cress and Taura. Cress, in fact, was releasing his energy while screaming, and could see sparks coming from him; Taura merely stood still while smirking with her arms crossed. He also noticed Vidalia's position: it was clumsy and badly put, like if she was just learning how to do it. _What is she doing? Isn't she a high-class fighter?_

"These are the Metal Men, everyone! Don't let their cute appearance deceive you: they are among the strongest races of the universe thanks to their unbreakable metal skin! They lack vocal cords, though, due to their diet consisting of lava. Interesting trivia! Do you know how they are born, my lord?"

"I could tell you Das, but there are kids in the arena."

And everyone in the audience laughed.

"Well, anyway, the Metal Men of Sadala were brought here by Lord Sadala for construction purposes, but these guys aren't simply builders, oh no, they are capable fighters! They decide their fighters with a contest: whoever makes the best-looking rock castle wins!"

"A rock castle? That sounds quite absurd." Frost said.

"Yes, but their hands aren't made for the subtle art of making that kind of castles my lord, so of course the contest involves something hard to do for them."

"I see. Such a fascinating race." Frost said, smiling.

"Yeah! Only the best of the best for these games! When I shoot the signal, you may all start!"

The silence returned for a moment while the fighters were preparing themselves. The Metal Men, the three of them, looked very similar, but with a subtle difference. Magetta had aquamarine eyes, the other had pink, and the last one had a darker steel body. Magetta was shooting steam from his head.

"Everyone!" Taura, Renso, and Cress shouted in unison. "Form a small group!"

And they did. Cabba and the pink uniform lady went with Renso, Vidalia went with Taura alongside two males, leaving Cress with the other two girls, each facing a specific Metal Man. Not surprising, Cabba was facing Magetta.

"Magetta! Let's show what we both got!" Cabba shouted, and Magetta was shocked to see him. Renso, however, told him to keep quiet.

"Focus Cabba!"

"Are you sure you should even be here? You're just a kid." The woman shouted at him, but Cabba ignored her. He was already there, nobody should tell him anything now.

"Ready..." the commentator stated, with every soldier preparing for the battle. Cabba was ready to prove his worth, but felt like his stomach was about to explode.

"Their skin is unbreakable" Renso stated quickly to the two of them. "So don't try to do strike them down with your fists."

"Understood." Cabba nodded.

"Start!"

The first to launch an attack was Taura, who charged energy in her hands and sent an energy blast in the shape of a ring at the dark metal man. The steel giant was stunned for a moment. During that moment, the two guys went running in that direction, and one of them was so fast he managed to launch an energy blast from behind the creature, causing him to open its mouth; during that same moment, the other jumped really high and sent a blast to the creature's mouth. The audience cheered excited.

"An incredible start everyone! That coordinated attack came from the Celeric brothers! These young brothers helped Taura during her time on Planet Taurus many years ago, where a giant creature was devouring its citizens! What was the name of said creature, my lord?"

"The Phototauros, a plant monster shaped like a bull." Frost then changed the tone "But, my good sir, don't you see? That Metal Man just got a load in its mouth."

"Sir! Please, not in the front of the children." And the audience laughed.

The Metal Man, despite receiving quite the load, punched the flying brother with its hand, sending him flying to the top of the Coliseum and hitting himself against the barrier. The audience did an _ouch_ sound, as the man fell down to the ground. His brother tried to help him, but Taura stopped him, as the man got up with difficulty.

"See that people, the youngest one is still kicking!"

On Cabba's corner, Magetta attacked by sending a ball of fire from his mouth, and he was lucky to evade it by flying, as one of his shoes caught fire and had to take it off. "Dude, I just got the uniform today!" Cabba yelled. Renso attacked with a barrage of energy blasts, while the woman was doing the same as well.

"Kora, is not working!" Renso screamed at the woman.

"I noticed, captain! None of our attacks do anything to that thing."

"Him!" Cabba shouted.

"What?" Kora screamed.

"His name is Magetta, all right?"

"Alright, who cares about _his_ name, brat? We need to defeat _him_!"

"You don't have to be so rude!"

"Both of you, quiet, I need to think!" Renso shouted at them. "I have an idea. Both of you, distract him!"

"Yes, sir!" Both of them shouted in unison, releasing more energy blast against Magetta.

"The Metal Men don't appear to be capable of hearing anything we say, good sir," Frost said.

"Ah, yeah! The Metal Men have rocks on their ears, not allowing them to hear anything. And let me tell all the soldiers out there, if you so think of destroying the rocks, you will be disqualified. These are orders from King Sadala himself!"

"My, my, how interesting," Frost said, smiling.

"Crush bomb!" Renso shouted, shooting a scarlet energy blast from his hand to the floor where Magetta was, making him fall. Cabba couldn't help but feel joy at his master fighting, but it quickly vanished as Magetta shot at Kora's direction, taking them off-guard. The spit reached her, and started to burn her uniform, leaving no choice but to roll in the ground to turn it off.

"Kora! Are you ok?" Renso shouted.

"I-I'm fine, but I won't lie, it hurts!" She shouted. Her uniform was damaged, letting Cabba ser her skin, but it wasn't a pleasant view due to the burn she received from Magetta.

"That's Kora!" The commentator announced after seeing her survival " She comes from the Ambrosia colony in the distant planet of Nectar! As the oldest member of a vast family, she came from her humble upbringings to take the champion title!"

"Oh, Ambrosia! The land was absolutely wonderul thfe last time I was there, with great poets and they also have rivers made out of honey, can you believe that?"

"That sounds impossible sir." The commentator said to Frost, who was smiling like a little child.

"I'm serious! And to make it more real: Whoever guesses who will be the first person to be defeated, will earn a free journey to Planet Nectar! I invite!"

And the audience cheered. They all screamed different names, from Kora to the brothers, but Cabba could hear many people saying "that kid" like crazy. He focused on Magetta, who was down, and by the looks of it, he had trouble getting up, no doubt from his intense weight. He put his arms in position, and started to charge a powerful blast from his hands at him while he was down. _I seriously hope you don't gain some grudge with this my friend, I have to win._

"Garlick Buster!" And Cabba shot a powerful purple beam in Magetta's direction, and the steel giant took the blast, but didn't appear to have any sort of effect. Magetta was still trying to get up.

"What are you doing you moron?!" Some people in the audience screamed at him. _Jeez, calm down people, what am I supposed to do with an immovable object?_ He looked in Cress direction, and he was shocked to see him so calm. He stood there watching the creature while the two girls were distracting him. He was trying to do something, saying something, but Cabba couldn't hear due to the audience screaming at him.

Then, the fight with the girls stopped, as the Metal Man was starting to being lifted from the ground. The people were in shock, and Cabba couldn't take away his eyes from it.

"Incredible! The Metal Man appears to be flying!"

"But that can't be!" Frost shouted, visibly scared with his hand on the chest, "they aren't capable of doing so!"

"He is not flying!" The commentator shouted with all of his breath, "Cress is making him fly through telekinesis!"

And the audience screamed. Cress was still saying something, and the Metal Man kept floating through the air. The girls stood there, not knowing what to do while the Metal Man was moving like crazy trying to return to the ground. Then, the two of them looked at Cress who was still concentrating, and knew what to do: they shot in unison a powerful beam against the creature, trying to take it off the arena.

It was working, as the blast was moving the Metal Man to atop the arena, although at a really slow pace. The people were screaming out of excitement.

"I didn't think a Saiyan could have such an ability. Who is he, my good sir?" Frost said to the commentator. The commentator was receiving some information from the antenna on his head.

"His name is Cress, and he is from a rich family in the distant country of Acar. He defeated the Arlians from last year. According to the data, thanks to his family's money, he was able to study unusual techniques, which helped him in the conflict of the Arlians"

"So his money gave him superpowers? What a threat." Frost said, while not taking away his eyes from the Metal Man in the sky.

Cabba kept looking at the flying Metal Man for a moment while he was still on the air. _So, this is the power of an elite._

"Cabba, keep focus!" Renso shouted at him He looked that Magetta was still trying to get up, with Kora flying above him and shooting him to keep him on the ground.

"What am I supposed to do, sir?"

"I'm thinking about it, but as a soldier, you can't lose your attention in battle, it could cost your life!"

"Yes sir, sorry sir!" Cabba did a salute. "But sir, we need to do something besides simply shooting!"

"Yeah, I thought of that, "and Renso raised his hand and started to charge energy on it. The energy was of a scarlet red color, with a changing shape going from a circle to a triangle. Renso then pointed at Magetta the blast.

"This attack is called the Crusher Shield. It will create an energy shield that will keep Magetta trapped for a while, maybe tiring him because of the lack of oxygen... I hope. Once he is out of commission, let's focus on the other one with the others."

"Understood sir!" Both Cabba and Kora shouted.

Then Renso shot the energy blast to Magetta, and the scarlet energy blast, like it was made from modeling clay turned itself into a circle across Magetta. Magetta, who was able to get up, repeatedly punch it in order to break it, but was out of luck.

"This is a pretty advanced technique, not many can learn it. Now, let's go help our comrades." And the three of them went to help Taura and her team.

"Oh, that's an unusual technique, you know, for a Saiyan." Frost said.

"Yeah, for the most part, Saiyans aren't known for creating tricky techniques." The commentator said, calmer than usual, "They are known for the offensive, which is why Lord Sadala brought the Metal Men, as many games in the past were mostly decided on who was stronger than who."

"I see. Well, I'm glad to see the elite members using strategy over brute force. That man is the captain of the Sadala Forces, right?"

"Yeah! Captain Renso, the son of one of our most famous champions! The son of Esparra!"

"Oh, I see. And that kid is his son, right?"

"Eh... no. That kid name is Cabba, and he is Renso's apprentice. I don't have a lot of information about him, it appears this is his first time in anything."

"Well, well. These games have experienced warriors, but that kid is quite lucky to be here." Frost said, and Cabba heard him. He felt like a small headache, remembering the doctor's words of him not being special, of being overshadowed by awesome. _Focus, Cabba, focus. Renso already told me_ I am _exceptional and will prove it!_

Taura stood there, watching the Metal Man fighting against the two brothers. Vidalia was flying around, shooting at the walking steel giant to no avail. Cabba noticed she didn't have a scratch on her, as the dark Metal Man didn't focus on her, merely on the brothers.

The Metal Man was angry, shooting steam out of its head, and kept trying to strike down the brothers with its punches. One of the punches, however, landed, and sent the man flying, landing on Cress and breaking away his concentration.

Cress moved quickly, but the brother didn't. The Metal Man fell on his arm, causing him to scream like crazy.

"My arm! My arm!" He kept screaming. His older brother tried to help him, but Taura told him to ignore him with her hand. Cabba, however, couldn't help but fly in his direction.

"Oh, it appears someone is down!"

"My, my. Some of you earned a journey to planet Nectar, but the man will need medical care. A timeout is at hand."

And the Metal Men calmed down, with the fallen one rising from the ground, with an ashamed look on its face, while Cabba and Cress were helping the man to get up. The arm was crushed, and the man wouldn't stop screaming in pain.

"Will he fight again, mister Cress?"

"I... I don't think so, kid. The creatures of this year are tough ones."

The medical personnel arrived in a hurry, putting the man in a bed and running into the building. Fifteen minutes happened, and Cabba was now trembling in fear.

* * *

 **Author Note: Frost dialogue is a reference to two characters, one from Star Wars, and the other from Fable. I had fun imagining him as this rich guy that loves to joke alongside the commentator.** **Frost being a commentator alongside Das was mostly to satisfy the voices in my head, as I really love the voice acting of Ryusei Nakao.**

 **I gave Cabba a hobby so secret it wasn't foreshadowed in the past chapters. Truly, I'm the master of being subtle!**

 **Renso's techniques are named after Caulifla's "Crush cannon". I imagine the Garlick Buster, Cabba's signature technique, is something common for the soldiers of Sadala, but the captains have their own original techniques. Caulifla probably took the name from her big bro.**

 **Despite the simplicity, Brad and Das come from Bread and Soda. Maybe. Kora comes from okra, and Esparra comes from the Spanish word for asparagus (Esparrago)**

 **I made Cabba versus Magetta before you, Itjo56!**

 **Please, tell me what do you think of the fighting narrative! Is the first time I ever wrote something like this!**

 **Update 27/11/2018: Fixed some minor typos.**


	8. Two brats, one walking steel wall

**Author Note: I updated a bit of information in the last chapters. There were a few continuity issues in chapter 2, where I said only rookies could enter the games, but it doesn't make much sense as Elite members can still enter. Such mistake can happen to writers who mostly improvise as they write. So, if you notice any change in the last chapters, I'll make sure to let you know in the author notes.**

 **Playing with perspectives again.**

* * *

 **Two brats, one walking steel wall**

 **VIII**

There was a brief time-out of five minutes, where the fighters could think a clear strategy against the giant Metal Men. The steel giant of dark armor was releasing steam from his head, angry and determined, waiting for the guards to do the signal to continue, while the other one looked ashamed of itself for going so far in the fight. Renso's Crusher Shield was still intact, with Magetta still trying to get out of the sphere. The young Celeric, named Serik, as the commentator and Frost discussed, would probably no longer be able to fight for a long time, as the weight of a Metal Man is enough to break the bones of anyone beyond repair.

"Was the king so interested in making this such a difficult fight?" Frost asked the commentator (Name's Das, Cabba didn't forget), "he lost one fine soldier on the way."

"The king is a proud man, my lord. He believes Saiyans have to prove their worth. They have to protect the weak, but also prove they are part of the Saiyan race."

"My, my. I can respect such a culture, but hope that man gets better."

"He will, my lord, thanks to some of the best medical equipment coming from you."

Frost smiled, proud of himself, while the audience kept talking to themselves during the time-out.

...

Renso was helping Kora with her burn with Cabba assisting him. She could stand, but couldn't hide the pain out of her face. The captain tore apart a part of his uniform to make some improvised bandages.

"I'm so sorry captain. I didn't expect that thing to burn me."

"Him," Cabba said.

"What?"

"His name is Magetta, he already told you that," Renso answered while helping her with her wounds. "Maybe you should retire, these burns are pretty serious."

"A simple burn won't stop me. I didn't become an Elite so I can simply back off."

"You promised it to the people, right?" Cabba asked.

"What?" She replied, confused.

"Your uniform is pink. It means you pledged loyalty to the people of Sadala, right?" Cabba said with an overexcited smile on his face, which Kora replied very confused.

"I guess. I never really cared about the color of this uniform, though. I just thought it looked good on me."

"Yeah Cabba, is just a uniform. Don't think too hard about it." Renso said, finishing helping her with the bandages. "Well, I already told you to leave, but if you insist, I won't stop you. Just be careful, alright Kora?"

"Yes, captain!" Kora did a salute, and prepared herself for battle, as the time-out was about to end.

"I'm the only one who cares about symbolism?"

"Cabba, quiet," Renso said with his menacing voice, which gave Cabba chills on his spine, and he quickly prepared himself to fight. He felt uncomfortable touching the ground with his feet, as Magetta burned his shoe. The ground was burning due to the heat of the Metal Men, if it wasn't because Cabba trained in the desert, he couldn't possibly stand it.

He saw the other fighters. The two girls were talking with Cress, possibly preparing another strategy, while Taura was as calm as ever, standing there with her arms crossed looking at the dark Metal Man who "kindly" returned the look at her. The older Celeric was alongside her, and from the look of it, he was extremely pissed off, with a dash of energy being released from his body. The child, Vidalia, however, was flying above them.

"isn't she going to fight?" Cabba said to Renso.

"Maybe she is just like you, and tries to avoid damage," Renso said, but after a few seconds, he spoke again. "Cabba, listen to me. Whatever you do, don't lose your cool."

"Huh? Why, sir?"

"Because losing your cool is being unprofessional; is losing your way as a soldier. A soldier who loses his cool will be an easy target. Don't cry, don't scream, just kept it together until the end. That's the way we do things."

"Keeping my cool... I think you told me that in the desert one time."

"You trained in the desert?" Kora said looking from behind her shoulder. "You look too young for it. Did you destroyed any meteor?"

"I...I didn't. Yet."

"Heh. Well, don't feel too bad about it. I'm an elite, but it was only until some months ago I finally did. Is more difficult than you think."

"I...I see." Cabba said.

Despite not knowing her, he felt something, like a small happiness inside of him, and smiled about it. It was the first time he spoke with an elite, and could relate to them. He felt determination going through his veins. "Well! We shall knock them all down, captain!"

"Now you're talking!"

...

The commentator started to talk again.

"Thank you for your patience, you're all too kind dear audience. Now that the spectacle can finally restart! Can these brave warriors survive the heat of the Metal Men?! Let's find out! The match starts again!"

And the two Metal Men released steam from their bodies. Magetta did too, but all he did was to cloud the entire energy sphere, ending up blind. All the Saiyans charged against the Metal Men.

Taura was fighting hand to hand against the dark one, with their punches striking each other, with the audience being shocked at the scene. Cabba saw that and all he could ask is how Taura's hands weren't broken out of the sheer strength. From a punch of her, a burst of cloud appeared, blinding the Metal man.

"Oh! Taura released smoke made out of energy! Impressive!" The commentator said jumping out of excitement.

"Not a big deal, a pretty basic technique," Frost replied, lying bored on his seat.

Taura then made another energy ring from her hands, and send it to the steel giant. Quickly, she started to do signs with her hand, and the energy ring went above the giant, and put itself surrounding it. The giant couldn't move, and was severely confused by what happened.

"That attack seems oddly familiar, so for that, I'm not going to give you extra points champion." And the emperor did a thumb down while still looking bored. Taura didn't seem to care, she simply walked to Cress, who was trying to concentrate while everyone else was fighting the other Metal Man

"I take it from here, you focus on the dark one."

"Ah, yes, of course!" Cress said, somewhat embarrassed.

"You, Kires! Make sure you defend Cress, since the brat over there is shown to be a dog that doesn't even bite." She said to the older Celeric brother while looking at Vidalia, that from the looks of it, was still flying like nothing.

"Yes, superior!"

...

She overheard her. She hates to admit it, but she felt uncomfortable in her situation. Trying those weird postures, she thought she could win the fight by simply spamming her energy blasts or punching at the walking steel giants, but she was wrong. No matter what the other soldiers did, they couldn't do anything to even scratch them.

The man with the silly goggles on the face raised his hand, and from that moment the Metal Man was rising from the sky, trying to escape the energy ring Taura put it through. Taura was so cool, and yet, she couldn't do anything in her position other than watch.

"You there! If you are just gonna fly there like a moron, why don't you go home?!" Said the older guy from before. _What was his name again? Kira?_ She thought to herself. _Whatever, let's just ignore him._

The walking giant kept flying through the air, but the goofy guy wasn't even close to getting him out. The rust bucket was too heavy for him. _What was his name again? Did it really matter?_ She then remembered: a while back, those two nobodies helped him with her combined energy blasts, helping the Metal Man fly away faster.

What is stopping her from doing the same? Is been a while since the last time she could go all out. She smiled, somewhat maliciously at the thought.

She flew with the best her speed could give her, going below where the Steel Giant was. The man whose name she couldn't remember started to scream. "Are you trying to kill yourself, you moron?! Get out of there!"

Yeah, she was. It was exciting.

She started to raise all of her energy, hidden deep between herself, a power she couldn't release for a long time, feeling free again. Her energy kept raising, and from there she raised her hands to the walking steel giant on the air, and screamed from the button of her lungs while releasing a powerful scarlet energy blast. The Steel giant started to ascend faster than with those two girls from before, leaving the arena.

The audience was in shock, silenced at the sight.

"And one of the Metal Men is down, gone from the arena by a combined effort of Cress and that child!"

"Such amount of energy coming from someone so young! Tell me, who is she, my good sir." Frost said excitedly in his seat. The commentator was equally impressed while information came to his antenna.

"The name is Vidalia! She is the daughter of Lady Onion, a relative to the Queen of Sadala, my lord! According to this information, her strength is simply natural!"

"A noble, eh? My, my, new faces all around. Maybe I will find new champions to help me in my quest." Frost said, smiling to himself from the crowd.

She didn't have to say anything. She didn't need to say anything. She looked at Taura, who watched the spectacle. She looked surprised, but at the same time, bored.

The rest of the soldiers looked at her surprised, though, including the Metal Man. It was like they never saw someone like her.

As it should be. She raised her hand looking at the girly looking Steel Giant, and gave the middle finger to it.

The Metal Man started to release steam from its head. It was furious of its friend getting out of the arena, and went running to her, leaving aside the rest of the nobodies facing it. At the same moment, however, the energy shield surrounding the other giant broke, making everyone else focus on that one, leaving her all alone.

That wasn't good. The speed of its punches was actually worrisome, making her evade with difficulty. No matter how strong she was, one punch from that giant could kill her. She kept evading, but the heat in the area was getting through her. _This damn uniform, why do I have to wear it?_

"What's wrong?" Taura screamed at her, smirking about it while watching "I thought you said you wanted to be a champion!"

 _What are these two morons behind me doing?_ She thought to herself, unable to see due to her focus being the rust bucket in front of her. _Why aren't they helping me?_

The girly looking giant opened its mouth, and she could see lava coming from inside of it. The giant put both of its arms around her so she couldn't escape, while playing with its mouth. _Oh crap, I'm going to die by a spit!_

She closed her eyes, scared for her life. It felt like an inferno down there. She heard the audience gasping.

"Garlick buster!"

She opened her eyes to a familiar voice, as the metal giant was struck on its mouth by a purple energy blast. The boy from before appeared flying, taking her by the arm and carrying her in a hurry.

"Excuse me for messing with your fight, miss Vidalia!"

...

Cabba couldn't really see her face due to the googles, but he could see she was surprised to see him.

"Excuse me, really! I know is not polite to grab your arm!" And he bowed in sign of respect. She stood up, and patted her pants. She stood silent for a second looking at him.

"Thanks a bunch, but I didn't need your help."

 _Yeah, right, I heard that line before in a book. You're not fooling me._

She looked behind, looking for Cress and the older Celeric, only to see Cress on the ground, with a hand on his head. His expression was of pure pain. Kires was alongside him, taking care of him.

"What is happening to him?" She asked. Her voice didn't sound as deep as before, while still keeping a certain tone.

"According to the captain, if he overuses that technique, his head starts to freeze. Kires is alongside him to help him move far away from the Metal Men."

"So... that's why no one helped me?" She then muttered something Cabba couldn't understand. He was curious about her. According to the doctor, she had a special oddity on her body like him. Looking at her huge power, he could see that. It was kind of exciting to know more.

"I came as fast as I could to help you. I told you before, since we are both alike in size, we should help each other." Cabba smiled, and gave his hand in order to shake it with hers, but she slapped it.

"Get a grip! I came here to be the number 1, not to be all buddy-buddy!"

"I...I see." He was offended, but decided to let it go and kept smiling. "Still, four hands are better than two, right?"

The Metal Man started to shout again, releasing steam from its head. The place felt like an inferno and Cabba was glad of wearing short pants now.

"Jeez, alright, you can help me! Let's go!"

And she raised her arm and started to attack the walking giant, whose skin was unaffected by the energy attacks. While the level of her attacks was impressive for someone her age, Cabba couldn't help but think she lacked any sort of discipline. He focused his attention on their fight, charging his energy while at it, but it was a pointless struggle. It was like a dog barking at a moving train.

"Your attack won't work, you need to look for a weak spot!"

"Thanks captain obvious, but I don't see any!" She replied while still launching as many energy blasts as possible. "If it cost me everything, I'm going to destroy the entire coliseum just to take this thing down!"

"Him!" Cabba shouted, then remembered he doesn't know who the Metal Man they were facing was. "I think."

"Whatever!"

She then raised her other arm, and combining both a more powerful blast was released, hitting the walking giant on the head.

It did nothing.

"You should have waited for him to open his mouth!"

And the Metal Man started to scream, making the place hotter than before, and from his mouth, a rock was sent flying in Vidalia's direction. Very quickly, Cabba launched the Garlick Buster in its direction. The rock was sent back into the mouth, making the Metal Man cough in pain.

Vidalia looked at Cabba, who kept smiling. Not a smirk mind you, just a gentle smile.

"That's the weak spot, I think!" He said.

"Oh! A nice attack, good, good, yeah. You know, for an apprentice born of humble origins, he did quite a decent feat." Frost said, lying on his seat, looking mildly interested.

"Yeah, your highness. Excuse me for asking, but you seem more interested in the two kids than in the champion and the other Metal Man!" Das said while looking at the match.

"Of course I am. I already know people like Taura and Cress are capable fighters, but sometimes is more entertaining to see the young new fighters. Who knows, a darkhorse may be born out of unknown expectations!" Frost said.

The people cheered at Cabba. It was like a simple word from the emperor could make the sun shine only on him. He blushed, feeling quite thankful of being acknowledged, and looking at the direction of the emperor, bowed in sign of respect.

"Look out, you moron!"

Vidalia struck him down on the head, making him fall to the ground. He quickly got up and saw her getting burned by an attack from the Metal Man.

Her clothes were burning, and she was screaming in anger. With a dash of speed, she released energy from inside of her, screaming from the top of her lungs, burning the armor and clothes she was wearing.

By the end, only a green top and the green pants were left. Her goggles were destroyed, and the ponytail disappeared, letting her spiky hair, shaped like a hedgehog, to be seen.

"What are you doing here?!" Cabba shouted looking at her.

"You!" She shouted at the Metal Man, completely angry. "Is about time I show you who is the boss in this arena, with or without fake names! I, Caulifla, I'm going to knock you down!"

* * *

 **Author Note: I'll admit the reason for writing this fanfic: I have a certain fondness for the Universe 6 Saiyans, but I was less inspired to write about them out of fondness, and more because I wanted an excuse to write something and flesh out my narrative. Some personal real life issues didn't allow me to write original fiction, so I came to write fanfiction instead. Surprisingly, its a very fun thing to do, especially to characters who aren't as explored as the Saiyans, although it kind of annoys me none of my ideas will become a reality XD Just a headcanon thing.**

 **Is possibly for the best, as I improvise a lot when writing, and re-reading the fic it shows, as there are some minor inconsistencies or some wasted opportunities that didn't occur to me at the time.**

 **Because of this, I now I understand why shonen anime like Saint Seiya or Naruto has a lot of "flashbacks" of off-screen training: because the author didn't think of them at the time, and works as a convenient way to introduce information without breaking the narrative. But at the same time, however, it makes it more exciting when the character does something unexpected! (Like Goku doing the Kaio-ken again, or most of Jojo's antics)**

 **But I can see why people would be disappointed and call it an "ass-pull". It happened a lot in the Universal Survival Arc, with Kefla, Aniraza, and God of Destruction Toppo. Let's face it, it wasn't properly foreshadowed in Aniraza or Toppo's case, despite the manual stating it, but the series didn't. I'm trying my best to properly foreshadow things. After all, one of my favorite stories comes from Metal Gear Solid, and re-watching everything is a delight, as it comes full-circle.**

 **Also, the Metal Men are weak to insults in the canon of the series. Do flipping birds count as insults?**


	9. An unexpected diversion

**Sorry for the long delay.**

* * *

 **An unexpected diversion**

 **IX**

Caulifla was mad.

No, mad couldn't describe what she was feeling. She was absolutely livid, with the energy surrounding her overflowing like crazy. Cabba felt that energy, but couldn't believe she had that much potential. She kept firing her energy blasts at the Metal Man nonstop.

"An unexpected turn of events, everyone!" The commentator shouted jumping from his place. "Vidalia wasn't who she said she was! Who is this girl that has taken over her place?!"

"Intriguing, if I said so myself. So that much potential doesn't come from someone from royal blood." Frost smirked. "Can someone get a better view of that child?"

"Ah, yes sir! Cameramen, please, focus your attention on her face."

The giant screen on the top of the Coliseum was mostly ignored by the audience, due to the fact it rarely focused on the matches and more on what product the owners could promote, or just focusing on anything Frost was saying. Caulifla's angry face was seen through the screen.

…

"Hey captain Renso, look who joined the fun," Taura shouted at Renso while they were fighting Magetta, grinning about it.

"What?! Caulifla, what are you doing here?!" Renso shouted at his sister, horrified.

He stopped what he was doing and tried to run in her direction, but Magetta stopped him with his arms. The walking steel creature had a grudge at Renso for trapping him. Renso tried to evade, but Magetta was faster than he looked, trapping him under his body, trying to trap him the same way he did it to him.

"Move!" He said while shooting most of his scarlet blasts, but was unable to even scratch him. "God damn it, get off me you rusted bucket!"

But Magetta kept doing so, deaf to his words. He opened his mouth to bathe him in his lava spit, but Renso then noticed something: his ears. Renso forgot the Metal Man don't wear those rocks in their head, and the commentator did say any soldier who destroys them would be disqualified.

He didn't care.

He didn't care about it anymore. He pointed at the left ear, and shot one of his blasters, destroying the rock. The Metal Man eyes opened wide, as he could hear everything again, including the crowd.

"Get away, you disgusting looking rusted bucket clown!"

And the eyes of the walking giant were opened more than before, and the giant set him free, as he put himself in a fetal position, weeping like a baby.

"What¡! Renso destroyed the rock from the Metal Man! That's the one rule we told you all of you fighters not to break, and you did it. The fighter Renso is disqualified!"

Then the commentator started to receive information coming from his antenna.

"What's that? The child has been identified! That girl's name is Caulifla, and is the younger sister of captain Renso!"

"Siblings, huh? A troublesome family, but a welcomed plot-twist for me, I must say. And why isn't she disqualified too?" Frost asked, lying on his seat, smiling about the situation.

"Oh? Oh yeah! I'm afraid Caulifla isn't a member of the Sadala Forces, and she also took away the identity of an apprentice, so she is also disqualified! Please, take her from the arena!"

"Not yet!" She kept blasting everything she had against the Metal Man, but her attacks amounted to nothing. "Not until I defeat this goddamn walking bucket!"

From behind her, she was grabbed by the arms, making a full nelson. She couldn't calm down, as Cabba was holding her down.

"Calm down, Caulifla! You can't be here!"

"Silence you... you... boneless chimpanzee!"

And the audience gasped in horror. Caulifla said an offensive slur.

"Wow, even if we can't hear everything from this distance, I'm pretty sure the audience heard that word. How offensive on your part, young Caulifla." Frost said, all calm down on his seat. "Guards, what is taking you so long?"

Caulifla, in a fit of anger, hit Cabba on his stomach with her elbow. Cabba felt a lot of pain, as her energy was overflowing like crazy, even on her arms, and had no choice but to set her free. Caulifla tried to keep attacking at the Metal Man, but the steel giant was stopped by Taura's energy ring. What she found instead, was her big brother looking down at her, with his arms crossed.

"What the hell are you doing here, you moron?!" He shouted. Cabba never saw him that angry before, as his eyes were intense in anger. Caulifla, however, didn't appear to be scared of him.

"What do you think I'm doing? I'm fighting to be a champion, of course!"

"No, you are just risking your life! You aren't a soldier, never wanted to be one, and yet you are here like this is some sort of game?!" He kept walking and grabbed her by the arm, while she tried to let herself be free. "We are going home, you made me lose my opportunity to fight too!"

"Let me go, bro! I can't let that Metal Baby get away from my win!"

"Hold it right there!"

The emperor stood up from his seat, and the giant screen focused the attention on him. In his face, there was a smirk of enthusiasm. Renso stopped moving to focus his attention on Frost, while Caulifla was still trying to set herself free.

"I'm afraid I simply can't let you go. While is true you took the identity of someone else, and you aren't a soldier, the potential I see in you intrigues me." He then chuckled a bit. "Besides, while I can't take away your brother disqualification, I can give you the opportunity to keep playing in these games, child."

Then Caulifla stopped what she was doing and put attention at the blue man on the royal seat. She was smiling, with her eyes wide open.

"Really?! But, sir, why are you allowing this delinquent to have her way?" Das was quite surprised by the emperor statements, and was angry for the same reason. "We don't even know what happened to the real Vidalia! Why you will forgive her but allow the Captain to be disqualified?"

"Is simple really. Renso made the Metal Man cry. Correct me if I'm wrong, but when they cry, they stop all that they are doing for at least a while, right? It means we have to have another timeout, and the audience doesn't want that. Right?"

And the audience screamed in his direction a big "no". Some even started to propel insults at Renso.

"The objective of these games is to entertain the masses and to show how capable the fighters are, yes? Well, Caulifla, right? I shall give you an opportunity to show yourself if, and only if, you defeat that kid." And Frost pointed at Cabba. The commentator was surprised to see such statements.

"But sir, that child is a delinquent, she broke many laws! After all of this is done, she will go to a reformatory!"

Frost smirked.

"I know, but, let's have some fun here. I am one of the judges of these events, right? and I can change the rules to make them more entertaining. My dear audience, tell me, do you want another timeout, or a small diversion?"

And the audience cheered at Frost words. "Let them fight! Let them fight! Let them fight!" they screamed.

"Well, you hear them all right. Don't worry, if I'm correct, it will be a quick diversion while the Metal Man recovers his will to fight." And he sat again on his seat, smiling about it.

"Well, if you insist. Captain Renso, get out of the arena. Young Caulifla, while the rest of the fighters focus their attention on the Metal Man, you will have to fight the young fighter Cabba. If you defeat him, we will forgive this transgression and allow you to keep fighting."

Renso was angry and tried to scream, but the guards arrived and took him in. He tried to fight back, but it was pointless. He was dragged back into the inside of the Coliseum. Cabba saw him getting away, and remembered his words from before of never losing your cool. _Too bad he didn't follow his own advice._

Caulifla, however, was ecstatic, and was preparing her fists.

"So I have to fight you in order to still be in these games? Well, it is my lucky day Pipsqueak!" And she smirked at Cabba's direction.

Cabba was recovering from the strike from earlier, but was calm about the situation. He put himself into his battle formation, as he was taught by his captain. He would lie if he said he didn't want to face off against her again after all those years, making his blood boil in excitement.

"If the great Frost wants it, I shall fight you Caulifla! But I won't hold back!" Cabba said with a serious expression on his face. He wasn't actually expecting to fight Caulifla again. The last time he fought against her, he had issues striking her face. Come to think of it, Caulifla was the only girl he ever faced in his life, as he only trained with Renso and other rookies in the desert before. _I mustn't hold back again_ , Cabba thought to himself, _she may have a stronger aura than me, but she still lacks discipline._

"You know, this is the first time in my life I ever held some sort of respect for that wi... I mean, the emperor. " And she prepared herself in her fighting position, with her hands closed in front of her face, like a boxer. "Don't piss yourself fighting me, since I'm going to take my anger at that stupid looking creature on you!"

And Caulifla charged in his direction, punching at Cabba in every direction. Unlike many years ago, though, Cabba was doing his best to avoid all the punches with his hands, making all of her attacks miss. Still, Cabba would lie if he said they didn't hurt. The more she punched, the more Cabba's was starting to feel heat on his hands due to her rampant energy.

Getting burned out, he took one of the arms going in his direction and took her to the ground. She quickly responded with her arm glowing in scarlet red pointed at him.

"Crusher cannon!"

And a sphere of energy of the size of a horse was released from her hand. It took Cabba seconds to react, flying outside of her range, while the sphere went against a wall. She grinned.

"What's wrong? Aren't you going to strike me?"

Cabba was planning to, but decided to not to. He watched her, sweating like crazy, trying to take a breath. Even if she was wearing little clothing, her continuous use of energy against the Metal Man tired her out. All he needed to do is make her use all of her energy and deliver a decisive blow.

Cabba smiled, and noticed her expression change. She was annoyed.

"Why are you laughing about? I haven't even tried all of my power!"

"You aren't used to the heat of the arena, Caulifla." Cabba shouted.

She responded with more of her scarlet energy blasts in his direction. "Yeah, and what?!" She kept releasing more of her energy like crazy, with Cabba only needing to dodge them. Feeling mischievous, something he rarely felt like, Cabba kept smiling while closely dodging them.

"You bastard!" Caulifla shouted, annoyed." Stop smiling and get close so I can hit you!"

Cabba didn't listen. He was waiting for her to go to him, and she did, rushing at high speed in his direction in order to strike him. Despite being prepared, she grabbed him, like she was hugging him, and the heat her body irradiated was intense, burning him. Despite her really slender body, she was strong. Cabba tried to get out, but was stopped by Caulifla stepping on his naked feet.

"Don't think you can mock me this way, you bastard. Prepare! Crusher...!"

Despite her best intents, Cabba could still do something about it. It was hard to concentrate flying in this position, but he could still use his hands. Using all the energy he had stored, he released it to the ground, and the both of them were flying in the air. Despite this, Caulifla kept holding him, and more heat was released from her body.

"...Cannon!"

And so, an explosion of scarlet hue came from her body, big enough for the people in the audience to be impressed by it. The two kids were bathed in such pain as they fell to the ground. It was impressive that Caulifla's clothes were kept together, as Cabba undershirt was burned in the process. She was the first to get up, quite happy despite bleeding from her head.

"And I win! An easy victory from yours truly!" She shouted while looking at the public, with her hands on the air. The audience was impressed. Frost, however, wasn't.

"She is the daughter of a former champion, right?" Frost asked the commentator. His expression was of boredom. "Her fighting style is quite... mediocre, to say the least."

"What?! "What did you say?!" Caulifla shouted in his direction.

"Caulifla!"

Caulifla turned around, and saw Cabba was standing up. Unlike her, he wasn't bleeding despite his body being burned, and from his eyes, she could see he wasn't troubled, as he was still determined to keep fighting.

"Man... you're actually pretty tough!" Caulifla would usually be annoyed by it, but was smiling instead, as her blood was burning with excitement. "I thought you were a goner for sure, pips... I mean, Cabba, let's keep fighting, shall we?"

He smiled, and he felt as he was about to shed a tear. Caulifla called him by his name. However, he remained focused. He didn't have to say anything, as he rushed flying in her direction. Caulifla was prepared to strike back, but Cabba disappeared from her sight. It took around two seconds, as Cabba kicked her from behind, in the back. In any other circumstance, Caulifla wouldn't have suffered any major injury, but her body was tired from all the released energy.

she didn't give up, as she was prepared to launch another energy blast in Cabba's direction.

"Crusher...!"

Cabba responded quickly, by kicking her in the belly. Caulifla actually felt the pain, as Cabba's kick wasn't a normal kick: it was filled with energy, similar to the heat she produced. Caulifla was sent flying to the ground. The audience gasped and the commentator jumped.

"Damn, I'm too far away in order to check if she can still fight. Can any of the soldiers check if the young Caulifla is alright?"

And so, while all the soldiers were focused on the angry Metal Man, there were at least 2 people on the sidelines, watching from afar the fight between the kids: Kora, and Cress. Cress was still trying to recover from his headache, making the already difficult fight with the iron giant hard to deal with for the soldiers, so Kora went running in the direction of the kids. She crouched and touched the young girl on the ground. She did a sign with her hand.

"Caulifla can't keep fighting! Cabba is the winner!"

And the audience cheered on the kid. Now that the job was done, Cabba's body actually started to tremble, being tired of the fight. He couldn't help it, as his stamina wasn't as great as his comrades due to his young age. Kora, who was carrying Caulifla on her shoulders, was smiling.

"You did a nice work there, kid. You combined energy with your kicks, I didn't expect that. Maybe Renso was right about you. Do you want to keep fighting?"

"Yes, please. I want to stay until the end."

"Nice to hear. I'm afraid you won't see this runt for a while, the guards and Renso will have to interrogate her about Vidalia's whereabouts."

"Oh, I see," Cabba replied in a somber tone.

After Caulifla finally calling him by his name, now he is not going to see her for a while. _It sucks. A_ nd so Kora went to the doors and gave an unconscious Caulifla to the guards. She arrived very quickly to stand alongside the young apprentice.

"Renso saw the fight. Energy kicks are part of the running training, huh? He is proud, but will kick your ass for attacking his little sister once all of this is over."

And Cabba didn't know how to react to that. Frost and the commentator kept talking.

"What use is too much power if you lack discipline? She fights like a common thug, I was hoping to see two Saiyans fighting, the daughter of a champion and the champion's son apprentice, but instead, I just got a short rumble. I'm disappointed." Frost said.

"And why you allowed them to fight, my lord?"

"I wanted to help the little ones get extra points. After all, they lack the techniques to defeat the Metal Men on their own. Still, that child stole an elimination alongside mister Cress, so, I'll keep that in mind when all of this is done. Let's see if they can take care of the two remaining Metal Men. Oh, look, the gray one stood up, he regained his fighting spirit."

34 minutes have happened since the start of the games.

* * *

 **Author Note: I originally wrote, "She may be a girl" in Cabba's dialogue. I tend to hate this kind of dialogue, mostly in Shonen manga, so I scrapped it. Yeah, they are girls, but female soldiers are still soldiers. But then again, Caulifla isn't a soldier, she is just a spoiled brat in this story. If she was a Pokemon, she would be a fighting-dark type.**

 **Despite her hostile attitude, the Caulifla from the anime has a good opinion of Cabba, even stating "I could even beat you with this (transformation)". I wanted to play this in a friendly manner, as Caulifla had a similar attitude with Goku, who she regarded as someone worth fighting (Well, Kefla did, but Caulifla is the dominant personality of the fusion).**

 **I apologize for not updating in a while. I was having some personal problems to deal with, alongside Xenoverse 2 DLC coming out and my curiosity for the different scenarios distracting me. In good news, I finally added a thumbnail. The artwork was done by Zanate.**

 **16/04/2019 Update: I added a minor retcon. I made Cabba proclaims he only fought Renso. I think it would be silly for all those rookies in the desert to have never fought with Cabba, so I added the minor mention.**


	10. Esparra, the former champion

**Author note: I've been months away, I don't know if I still have any reader left. I'm sorry. I started to work on a project, and because I lost track of the original idea, I had to re-read the fanfic. Well, here is the next chapter. By the way, I really liked Cabba and Kale during the manga chapters of the Tournament of Power.**

 **Sorry for using too many Ocs.**

* * *

 **The former champion, Esparra**

 **X**

An hour ago, he was excited about the feeling of fighting with his comrades again. Now, because of his nuisance of a sister, he was out of the games. He was angry and wanted to release his anger by punching something. If there was one thing he was glad about, is not being in the infernal heat of the arena with the Metal Men.  
Caulifla was unconscious, with Yarrow checking the computer to see if she was alright. Renso was both worried and angry at her, due to releasing so much energy. The doctor, however, didn't look worried. He was amused.

"What a kid!" He said. "So much potential and power, and she is not even part of the forces. Why is that, Renso?"  
"Is her strong-headed attitude. She could be part of the forces, perhaps even be the greatest member, but she is so reckless and refuses to listen to anyone."  
"A shame. With the right training, she could have put a better show."

Renso simply remained quiet, while the tv screen kept showing the battle. He was worried about Cabba, as he didn't know any technique that could even harm the Metal Men. _Damn it, I should at least tried teaching him the Crusher shield!_

 _"_ Captain, sir!"

The words of a man awoke him from his trance. From one of the beds of the room, the young Serik had his arm bandaged, no doubt from the Metal Man that fell on him. He was a young fellow, not older than 20 years old. He had an annoyed face, no doubt from the pain in his arm. Despite the medications, he still felt the pain, necessary for Saiyans power to increase.

"I saw the fight between your child and sister. Nice stuff, although short!"

"He is not my son, but thank you."

"Say captain" He kept talking, very excited. "Did I heard right? You are the son of a champion?"

"I guess."

"That's insane! That means this girl natural talent comes from that, right?" He kept talking, annoying Renso.

"Thanks." He said bluntly.

"Are you the son of Taura by any chance? Never heard she had a son." Serik asked. He noticed how the doctor was paying attention to the conversation.

"No. I'm the son of her brother."

Serik looked visibly confused.

"Taura has a brother? We worked with her for a good while, and never heard her mention him."

The doctor intervened in the conversation.

"That's enough, young Serik. Renso is tired, he doesn't need you to ask pointless questions."

"Jeez, sorry, I just wanted to..."

He was interrupted by the sound of the door opening with sound and fury. An old man with pointy ears came entering, furious with three soldiers behind him.

"There is she is! The imposter! Arrest her immediately! Vidalia's fate will not go unpunished! "

Renso stood up, nervous.

"Wait a second! You can't simply take a child to the prison! G-give me a day, I'm sure I can..."

"Hold your tongue, captain." One of the soldiers interrupted him. "I'm sure this is tough for you, but we can't make an exception for you. Caulifla is under arrest for the disappearance of a participant, impersonate for her, participate in the games without being a member of the forces, and the use of an offensive slur in public."

Renso said nothing, as he couldn't do anything to save her sister skin. The soldiers went to her bed while she was still unconscious, and put a metal collar in her neck, that severely decreased her energy. One of them started to carry her, and before they got out of the room, Renso stopped them.

"I'm going with you."

He saw how Caulifla was put inside a vehicle. He saw the other criminals in the vehicle: low-life rooks from other planets, with there, were three Saiyans too. Two of them pretty young. _Disappointing_ , Renso thought to himself.

"Don't you worry captain." One of the soldiers wearing a gray uniform said to him. "The moment she reveals what happened to the royal brat, she will be out! We will keep you informed."

"Understood." He simply nodded with his arms crossed.

...

"Only 15 minutes are left for the end of this match, and the fighters don't appear to be winning any time soon!" Said the commentator (Name's Das, by the way) through the tv screen. Renso returned to the room and found someone new in the room: one of the women assisting Cress.

She was young too and had an unremarkable face, was the first thing he noticed. She was exhausted in her seat, with an expression of pain with a collar in her neck. She wasn't wearing her burned blue uniform that was beside her.

"Are you alright?" He asked.

"One of those buckets hurt me really bad in the head. I gave up, and came here." She said, smiling awkwardly.

"Pfft. You should have stayed there fighting, like a true Saiyan, as Taura would say" said Serik while on his bed. She was annoyed.

"At least I will recover, unlike you, you asshole."

"Whatev." He said.

Renso sat there beside her, focusing on the tv screen. The camera was focusing on Kora and Cabba evading the attacks of the Metal Man known as Magetta, as Cabba said he was called. "Amazing of that kid to even care what the name of that thing is," Renso muttered.

"Is something on your mind, captain?" the girl asked.

"A lot of things."

"Sorry for bringing this up" she said, with some enthusiasm. "I heard you are the son of a champion! Could I ask you about it?"

"I don't..."

"Yeah, captain! Spill the beans!" Serik commented from his bed. "I'm really curious!"

Renso was annoyed, as he had too many things on his mind right now. A voice, however, interrupted his thoughts.

"Do you mind if I tell the story, Renso?" the doctor said, with a blunt expression on his face. Renso was so uninterested in talking or hearing about it, so he told him to go on with his hand. The doctor then sat in the middle of the room, with the two young Saiyans paying close attention to him.

...

Nobody knows how old our emperor Frost is, but I do remember the conflict in planet Nectar, forty years ago.

A terrible pirate named Lusk started a war against the Saiyans and the Nectarians, all with the intent of controlling the resources of that planet. Due to the power of this man, many cities were destroyed, and many innocents died.  
The Saiyans weren't enough to fight against that man and his forces, leaving no other choice but for Frost to directly intervene in the conflict. No one knows what happened, but they remember never seeing the emperor unleash so much power before.

Despite his forces being annihilated, Lusk managed to escape from the planet. Many of the survivors of Lusk's massacre were rescued by Frost himself, among them, there were two Saiyans: the twin siblings, Esparra and Taura.

...

"But, Lusk was captured just a few years ago. You mean he escaped for decades?" The girl asked. "How come Taura never talks about his brother?"

"Yeah, the pirate knew how to hide. A Namekian, surprisingly enough." The doctor said. He took a look at the screen, but nothing interested him. " About Esparra, I'm going there, please wait."

"Yeah, shut your mouth, I'm interested!" Serik screamed at her.

...

They were only children, but their potential was surprising. No doubt it was because of their experience surviving the massacre. Frost took an interest in them, and asked the previous Saiyan king to put them in the Salada Defense Forces. The king was reluctant at first, since they were too young, but their power was enough to convince him. They participated in the games when they were only 9 years old. By comparison, the two runts now participating are only 13.

They won, and shared the title of champion. They became famous across the universe as the best of the best, with names such as "the invincible duo", "the universal hunters", and so forth. Taura likes to brag about her generation, but they did so much stuff for the empire that you could write hundreds of books about it. While Taura managed to defeat the Phototauros a few years ago, her brother defeated the bigger beast 10 years prior: a plant-bull monster the size of a planet. She is kind of annoyed by that, don't remind her.

However, while Taura kept living, Esparra is another tale. He died 12 years ago in a distant and nameless planet.

...

"Wait wait wait. He simply died?" Serik asked. "How is that possible?"

"Nobody knows for certain. He simply disappeared one day, and the next thing you know, he was found in a newly discovered planet by the Galactic Patrol, rotting."

Renso remained quiet while hearing the tale. He never told Caulifla about the fate of his father beyond him being a former champion. He remembers the day before his father disappearance. He came home with dinosaur meat, with a worried look on his face. He was deadly worried about something but never said what. He simply stood there watching at the wall for some minutes, and told Renso the following.

"I'm going to investigate something. Please take care of your sister for me, understand?"

He never saw him again.

"Wow. Still, to defeat a monster the size of a planet is still so impressive. Why don't we hear more about him?" The girl asked, heavily interested in the tale.

"Respect, or possibly because people forget about the dead. Time is the biggest enemy of anyone. With Taura living, I believe people simply forgot about Esparra."

Before they could ask for more information about them, the commentator screamed in excitement through the screen. Renso awakened from his trance, and saw how one of the Metal Man was out of the arena.

"Can't believe it! Cress and Taura did a wonderful team-up tactic to take out one of the Metal Men! Now, only one is stopping them from winning the event!"

"Well, they were married, is normal they still can work together flawlessly," Frost commented with a grin on his face.

"That's not normal at all, your highness!" the commentator replied. " Only one Metal Man remains in the stage, and only 8 minutes are left! Can these brave warriors do it?!"

...

Cabba was exhausted. Despite only Magetta remaining, none of the attacks of any of the fighters did anything to scratch him. Only Cress could take him out of the stage, and he was suffering from his brain-freeze. Everyone else was exhausted from fighting during too long in the infernal heat. Except for Taura.

The former champion was still in great shape. She didn't look tired, and her clothes were as new. She looked bored even.

Then something struck Cabba like lighting, and he knew: Taura did nothing. Taura hardly did anything during the entire hour of the games. At first, Cabba though she was saving her energy for the final round. But then the image of her ripping the arms of the Namekian came to his mind.

By sheer instinct, his entire body moved in her direction, and started to charge his energy in his arms, ready to shoot a Garlick Buster. This didn't go unnoticed by either Taura or the crowd.

Cabba couldn't hear anything.

His body was moving entirely of his own, looking at Taura directly.

She was looking at him. There was something about her eyes: they were angry. It was like looking directly into the abyss, as she held no emotion besides a cold fury. Cabba couldn't understand what he was feeling.

It was terror, the terror of the unknown.

His hands were burning from all the energy, hurting him. Why wasn't him able to move of his own?

He started to feel something: a quake. The earth itself was shaking. He could now hear: hear the voices of the audience screaming because of the shake, but Taura kept looking at him, silently.

* * *

 **Author note: This was a heavy episode due to very little focus on the main (canon) characters. I hope you guys aren't annoyed by this. I admit I was growing a bit annoyed at the fight scenes, and since Cabba achieved his initial goal (Beating Caulifla), I thought it wasn't necessary to focus on it anymore, going to act 3.**

 **Tell me what you thought of it. Every constructive criticism is welcomed.**

 **Update 28/11/2017 : I erased the final part of this chapter. I think is irrelevant with the next one. I hope nobody minds.**


	11. The Tree of Eternal Bliss

**Author Note: I'm glad to read some of you are still around despite the months I've been away. That makes me happy. Well, here is the next chapter. Say, Saiyans are basically werewolves, at least in Universe 7. That reminds me of my love for horror monsters (Even if horror movies are not my thing, weirdly enough)**

* * *

 **The Tree of Eternal Bliss**

 **XI**

"Get me out of here you countless nobodies! I'll crush your skulls!"

The moment she woke up, Caulifla started to scream. She was alone in a cage, and not only her, but many others too in their individual prisons. She didn't pay any attention to them, they were unimportant, she just wanted to be free. She tried to release a blast from her hand, but nothing came from her palms.

"It's useless. Those collars take away your powers, child." Said the voice of a man.

She looked to her right, and saw through the bars a green-skinned individual sitting on his cage, wearing nothing but a metal mask and brown pants. Naturally, Caulifla wouldn't care to respond to anyone who dared even speak to her, but she recognized the man without a thought.

"You... you are that Namekian."

He shook his neck.

"You know about me?"

Caulifla didn't care about telling the truth.

"Yeah. A few years ago, I saw how Taura ripped your arms. You were running away from the law, which I hope you don't mind me telling you: that's my jam." She said, grinning a bit. The man, however, didn't say anything, merely looking at the void. This annoyed Caulifla. "Don't ignore me you asshole, or I'll kick your ass! Why are you here anyway? Did you escape again?"

"Yes. Got captured ten minutes ago."

"And you got yourself captured again? Hah! What a loser! Can't believe it"

The man didn't respond, leaving silence on the vehicle, while the other prisoners too remained silent. Caulifla grew annoyed, but couldn't think of anything. The only noise inside that room was the quiet whining of one of the prisoners.

"Stay quiet! Will you?" Caulifla screamed in the direction of the girl crying in the corner of the room. The girl kept doing so, but she could mutter a quiet "I'm sorry".

"Don't be rude to her, kid. You don't know what she may be going through."

"Big deal!" Caulifla rudely respond. "Like you are the one to talk, troublemaker. What kind of deal you went through to end up a prisoner so many times, green man?"

"I don't know, how about being mistaken for someone else?"

Caulifla eyes were wide open, and her interest increased. She loved hearing criminal stories.

"You were wrongly accused?! I don't believe you!" Caulifla remarked with a big grin on her face.

"Yeah." He said with a straight face, he didn't see the fun in his situation. " My friend and I were on a distant planet looking for resources for our people in Planet Namek." His voice grew angrier. "However, that woman arrested us for no reason! She saw us and started to attack!"

"That's crap! I don't believe it!" She snapped, punching the bars of her cage.

"Believe what you want, I'm speaking the truth."

"Taura is a brave and noble soldier, possibly the strongest in that stupid force. I doubt she would attack for no reason."

"I'm telling you. My friend and I were brought to this planet under suspicions of being some guy named Lusk. Even when we were revealed to be innocent, they still kept us trapped. We managed to escape, and even retrieve something from that witch's possession, just to piss her off. My friend escaped, but I remained here ever since."

Caulifla didn't believe him for one second.

"Liar. You are possibly affiliated with that Lusk, the infamous criminal. The news confirms that guy is a Namekian, your kind."

"Not all Namekians know each other, brat!" He snapped, punching the bars of his cage too. The sounds of the girl whining in the background could also be heard.

"Whatev."

Caulifla looked at the rest of the prisoners. Different races all right, no one them looking like Saiyans except for the girl and two guys.

"And why are you here anyway?" The green man asked. "Why is someone so young in this place?"

"I captured some weak noble and took her identity to participate in the games." She shrugged her shoulders. "They found me."

The girl stopped crying in the background.

"Y-you didn't kill her, didn't you?" She asked.

"Of course not!" Caulifla loudly remarked. "She is trapped inside the bathroom of my home. I'm not a murderer."

she sighed, in a sign of relief.

"I still don't see what was so special about that object, though." The Namekian said, still talking out loud.

"The thing you stole from Taura, right?" Caulifla remarked with some indifference in her voice.

"Yeah. Some spiky fruit."

That word was the trigger. The moment the Namekian said the word "spiky fruit", something in her mind was awakened: a distant memory of her childhood, where she and Cabba listened to a conversation between Taura and Renso. Caulifla indifference grew into interest.

Then, everything started to tremble.

"Hey, what's going on?!" Caulifla screamed.

"An earthquake? The magnitude is intense!"

Caulifla held the bars with all her restrained physical strength, as the magnitude was making the whole vehicle tremble, some of the cages started to fall into the ground with the prisoners still inside.

Then, the vehicle fell, hit by something enormous.

* * *

It was warm.

It was warm. He opened his eyes with difficulty, and the first thing he noticed is that was he surrounded by the color red. The color red, the color of blood, and feeling like if he was underwater. His couldn't think right, as he enjoyed the feeling that red water surrounds him.

He felt the need of sleeping again.

 _Poom!_

He opened his eyes again. He was still under that pleasant red sea. He didn't want to wake up, and closed his eyes again.

 _Poom!_

Again, his eyes were opened.

 _Poom! Poom! Poom!_

The constant strikes were enough. _Where am I?_ Cabba thought to himself. He felt a shake, like if something was hitting a wall. He swam to the front, and noticed the wall.

 _Poom! Poom! Poom!_

Something was trying to break it. He looked at his hands, which were miraculously healed from any injury in the Coliseum games. He was surprised, and started to focus his energy in his hands, and with the pulsating purple energy emanating from them, pointed his hands at the wall.

 _Poom! Poom! Poom!_

 _Wait for it,_ he thought to himself.

 _Poom!_

"Now!", and he released all of his energy on that one blast.

A hole broke from the wall, and he fell to the solid ground alongside all the red liquid. He coughed a lot of that water, and couldn't help but think he was coughing blood. He stood up and saw Magetta looking at him. He felt joy at looking at his friend.

"Magetta! You are alright!"

Magetta then responded with his train sounds. Cabba looked at his surroundings: everything was dark, like if they were inside a cave. He touched the walls, and the feeling was quite odd, it was like a tree, but he felt a heartbeat. He then looked at himself: his clothes were torn apart, no doubt because of the games, but he was curiously fine.

"Magetta, what happened?"

Magetta stood quietly.

"I was in the Coliseum just a moment ago! What is this place?"

"No!" Magetta said with his hands.

"No? What do you mean?"

Magetta then started to touch the floor with his metallic fingers. He drew a clock, and the number 6 in the Empire's language. Before Frost became the emperor of the universe a hundred years ago, the countless races wrote in their own tribal tongues, causing conflict not only in the individual planets, but between planets too. Cabba understood this, as Frost wasn't a hero because of being a valiant warrior, but because he brought order and understanding to the countless planets of the empire.

Cabba stood in shock when he understood the meaning.

"Six hours?! I've been here for six hours?!"

Magetta nodded.

"Then what is this place?!" Cabba screamed in horror.

"I don't know!", Magetta shrugged with his hands.

He put his hand again in the wall, noticing the heartbeat from before. It was a slow beat, very familiar. He remembered when his mother was pregnant and was allowed to hear her younger brother in her belly. The feeling was similar. Then, he put two and two together.

"I was inside this wall, right? How did you find me?"

Magetta did some noises, but Cabba couldn't understand him.

"If there is someone inside this wall, we need to get them out!"

Magetta nodded. They traded some signs between each other, and prepared for the endeavor. First, Cabba prepared the energy on his palms, and then with all of his strength, shot a beam blast at the wall. Magetta then punched at the wall.

It worked, as the wall crumbled. With enough speed, Cabba entered the hole by flying and extracted the person inside. It was an unconscious adult woman.

And Cabba knew who she was, as she fought alongside him that same day.

"Miss Kora! Please wake up!"

But no matter how much he screamed, she couldn't wake up. He felt awkward about it, but he first put his ear above her chest to make sure her heart was beating. It was. Good. Then he put her sideways and formed a punch with his two hands, and started to press her chest to get the red liquid out of her system.

She started to cough the water, and opened her eyes with difficulty.

"W-who... a-re you?"

"It's me, Cabba from Lad Sarced. We were in the Coliseum games!"

"Cabba... my head hurts. It felt... warm..."

 _She is not thinking clearly. Just where the heck am I?_

The earth below their feets started to tremble. No, it wasn't the earth: it was the entire place. Cabba felt it, it wasn't the planet trembling of its own, there was energy coming from inside that place. It was enormous, and he never felt something like it before.

 _It begins._

"Huh?" Cabba directed his gaze at Kora, but it wasn't her who said a word. Magetta was looking around too, meaning he too heard it. It was a female voice, but he didn't recognize it.

 _In the book of creation, there are two absolute truths: Life began when the supreme king planted the first tree, and that there were two kinds of fruit. The fruit of creation and knowledge, and the fruit of power and might._

 _People of Sadala, you proud yourselves of being the heroes of the universe by serving your kind owner with your limitless strength, and this beautiful planet is truly a nice place for the Tree of the gods to be planted. As such, I thank you from the depths of my soul to all of you._

 _Soon, this planet shall cease to be, and all of you shall become part of me._

 _The tree of Might is eternal bliss, and its fruits show the love of the gods._

* * *

"Hey runt, wake up!"

The second Caulifla eyes were open, she started to punch in the air, trying to hit something. She failed, only because the Namekian made sure to avoid her punches. When she came through her senses, she was speechless.

The entire city was surrounded by vines. Buildings, streets, all of it surrounded by roots of enormous size. Many of the buildings had holes with the vines coming out of it. The proud and reckless Caulifla stood still, trying to understand what was going on, and most importantly: asking herself where was everyone. Right beside her, there was only the Namekian, and behind them the vehicle from the Forces.

"Where is everyone?"

"They escaped." He said bluntly. "The moment we were all free from the cages and the control device, they all flee, trying to run away from this hellzone."

"All of them?" And Caulifla touched her neck, noticing the collar disappeared. "Who took away the collars?"

"Beats me. One minute, everything was dark, and the next moment I realized we are all free from the cages. It was weird."

"And why are you here?"

"I'm not going to let a child all alone in this place. I may not like your kind for what you did to me, but I'm not a heartless monster."

Caulifla took a minute to think about the situation. With the finger on her chin, she looked at the dark vines and where they were heading, and saw the giant tree. Caulifla didn't know how to feel, for once in her life she felt weak, as the tree was massive. She first compared herself with the Namekian right at her side, and notice he was the size of an adult while she was a child. The size of the tree was another thing in its entirety, as the tree made her feel like a complete ant under a dinosaur.

"What the hell is that tree?"

"I don't know. When I woke up, it was here all of a sudden. I flew around, and noticed with horror that this thing is where the Coliseum used to be."

Her skin started to shiver, and she couldn't stop herself from screaming from the button of her lungs: "My brother is there!"

* * *

He couldn't breathe.

He was in shock. He couldn't move. The Tree of Might, and the fact he and Kora were there, it was clear as night and day: all of the countless persons in the Coliseum were trapped in there. Were they dead?

 _No, they weren't. Get a grip Cabba, if you found Kora alive and you managed to get out of the walls, then all of them were alive too. You just need Kora and Magetta to help you out... but Kora is out cold. What if the others are too?_

 _Where was Taura? Was she responsible for it?_

 _Yes. She was. I know it. Ever since that day she came with that fruit... the fruit of the Tree of Might. Was she also responsible for the disappearance of Planet Yardrat?_

"Magetta! Please, help me! We need to get all the people in here before its too late!"

The steel giant nodded, releasing steam from his head, and started to punch at the wall.

 _Crack._

"Crack?"

And from the wall, a hand came out. However, it wasn't a normal Saiyan hand, or an alien one.

It was made of vines.

* * *

 **Author: As you may have guessed from way back in the first chapter, Taura is supposed to be a Turles Universe 6 analog. Her name is based on Tāresu, but it also sounds similar to "taurus", which gave me the original idea for the setting and her background with the Phototaurus.**

 **According to some sources, despite looking like Goku's twin brother, Turles is actually as old as Bardock. That gave me the idea of making Taura be a relatively old Saiyan woman, and the aunt of Caulifla, who kinda is Goku's counterpart.**

 **I also wanted to give the Tree of Might more background. It has many differences from the one in that old movie, hope you don't mind.**


	12. The Gray Saiyan

**This one chapter took me a while to do. It was supposed to come out in Halloween, but my job took my time.  
**

* * *

 **The Gray Saiyan**

 **XII**

From the walls of that dark place, a hand came out. The hand wasn't that of a Saiyan, or any alien species Cabba was aware of; it was made of vines. His skin started to crawl as he saw the hand moving like crazy in that place, trying to get out.  
He took a deep breath, and quickly took a step backward. Magetta was looking at the wall with open eyes, similar to a wolf prepared to defend its pack. Cabba, scared, charged his energy in his hands to shoot at it in case it was hostile.

He never killed anyone or anything before. Cabba knew it was bound to happen one day in his life, as all Saiyans do in the countless wars in the universe. But he didn't feel prepared for it. He remembered the words of his teacher to never lose his cool, no matter what happened, but was so scared at the same time he felt like crying.

The walls crumbled, and something came out of it, with a loud screech. Without any warning, Cabba shot the blast, striking him down.

He was scared of getting close to the creature, but with his heavy steps, Magetta did the deal. He stood beside it, looking down at it.

And then crushed its head with his feet.

Cabba felt like throwing up.

"I wonder if this is what the Forces have to deal with," he said, quite scared with something on his stomach. "Are you sure it's dead?"

"Cho-po!"

His master told him that the soldiers, if they aren't armed with weapons, should use their hands as a substitute. He raised his hands in the creature's direction and got closer to it. He saw it closer: it didn't look like any species on the cosmos, but more like a bipedal creature, whose gray skin looked similar to a plant. It was headless of course, but the blood it splattered was purple.

"What kind of thing is this?" he asked out loud looking at Magetta. "Magetta, do you know what this is?"

"I have no idea," Magetta said with his arms.

"Oooh..."

Cabba remembered Kora was lying in the floor behind him. He saw how she started to cough more of the red liquid, and was glad it wasn't blood. Rushing toward her, he crouched and put his hand behind her head.

"Miss Kora, are you alright?"

"Wa...water..."

"Water? You want water?"

 _That's bad. There isn't any water around here. I wonder if there's an exit around here so I can take her out quickly._

"Magetta, do you know where the exit is?"

"No!" Magetta said with his hands.

"Well, balls. I'll look for an exit, I know is difficult but try to follow me."

"Cho-po!"

With some difficulty as she was rather heavy, Cabba grabbed the Saiyan woman by the arms and started to fly through the long dark cave.

* * *

When she arrived the place was rather lonely, with no one besides them around, but now she could see the ships flying through the sky. Countless ships of both the Saiyan army and the Galactic Patrol were around the giant tree, and Caulifla could see some were landing close to them.

"Possibly to check on any survivors," said Pirina.

"Wow I couldn't tell big green captain obvious," remarked Caulifla.

They hid behind the ruins of a bridge, trying to remain unseen by them. There were no survivors around.

"You should go with them, is not safe around here."

"Look's who's talking, mister prisoner. I'm not leaving either, my brother is inside that thing, and I need to save him."

"Bold of you to assume he is still alive."

"Shut it, he is alive." said Caulifla while trying to remain hidden from the soldiers around the place, "wanna know why? because my family isn't one of wimps."

Her response left him quite puzzled.

"Whatever you want to think, kid. Still, something is bothering me about that tree."

"You mean... besides being a giant tree that came out of nowhere? I swear someone must have stolen the idea from that guy and his magic beans."

"I feel there is someone inside there."

Caulifla kept looking at the soldiers, waiting for the right opportunity to leave.

"Someone? You can sense energy?"

"Yeah," he said quite surprised. "You can't?"

"I'm getting the hang of it! Shut it! Who are you feeling?"

"There are people inside of it. But, there is something wrong, like, if the area was clouded."

Caulifla didn't pay attention to him, keeping her visual focus on the soldiers. The soldiers were speaking with each other, with one of them doing denials with his arms. They couldn't find survivors. Caulifla, however, grinned.

"If someone is inside, then my brother is alive like I tell you," and she hardened her first. "All right! we shall go inside the tree!"

Pirina, however, stood up with his body trembling in fear.

"We are not. We are leaving."

Caulifla was close to shouting but closed her mouth before she could.

"What do you mean with that? I'm not going anywhere!" She angrily remarked.

"I can hear those men conversation: the Galactic Patrol is evacuating everyone on the planet and will activate an Extinction Bomb!"

* * *

The place smelled hideous. No matter how much he flew, the stinking aroma of that cave was making him dizzy, and the fact he had to carry Kora along was just making things more complicated.

He tried launching an energy blast on the wall, but he refused to do that. What if he killed someone by mistake? _A lot of those people are still alive, after all, just trapped like Kora was. I need to find a way to get out of here._

He lost sight of Magetta a while ago, but could still hear his footsteps in the distance. Now it wasn't the time to be friendly, someone's life was in danger.  
He kept flying, but he had to stop. The smell of that place was horrible, he was about to throw up. Now he needed some water too.

He tried sensing the energy of the place, but it was useless. The whole area was surrounded by a dark aura, with countless energies being felt. It was like a compass being crazy.

"Need some help, Cabba boy?"

Her voice echoed through the cave, and he started to tremble. With no thought on his mind, he took his battle position while she was walking through the dark place. Her uniform was torn apart, showing her countless scars of war, but something was more surprising: other than her face, her skin was as grayish as powder.

"Stay back!" he shouted. She did, while looking directly at his direction.

"Oh? Who is that behind you? Why, is the stranger from another planet. And a pink uniform? My, such memories it brings."

"Stay back, you... murderer!" Cabba's energy started to burst from his hands, prepared to strike. "This is all your fault, I know it!"

She looked surprised for few seconds, but then started to giggle.

"Oh right, you were there the day I showed Renso the fruit. I totally forgot."

He was prepared to fire the blast in her direction, but she remained unfazed.

"So, Cabba boy. You knew I was planning something all this time, right?"

"Yes!" Cabba shouted, still making sure Kora was safe from danger. "Ever since that day I saw you breaking the arms of that Namekian, I knew you couldn't be a hero, especially since you knew about that fruit. I knew you were planning something, you murderer!"

She grinned, while touching at the wall that was still beating.

"Those green men? Please, like if Lusk's people were real people. They are the race of murderers." she laughed for a bit in a quiet way. "Pray tell, why didn't you tell anyone?" she said with a pretty casual tone, not taking away her sight from the wall.

Cabba couldn't think of an answer. He tried saying something, but he stood quietly.

"Let me guess: nobody would have believed you," she said, and something about her expression changed. There wasn't arrogance or malice in her expression, but a face Cabba couldn't understand. "I know what it feels to know a secret that no one would believe, either out of incredulity or for convenience. I know it very well."

He didn't lower his guard, but was inclined to do so. There was something about her voice that was strange. _Is it a trick? Yes! Definitely!_

"Cabba." she remarked, while angrily looking at him. "Even if I tell you, you wouldn't believe me. Saiyans like me are tainted, being nothing but pawns in a game," then her expression changed, "but you're young. You may be a nobody brought by my nephew's nepotism, but I haven't seen someone like you in the games since I was a child."

Then, a dark energy was felt around her, and a purple substance came from the wall. She put her hand on it, and she had the spiky fruit on it. She started to walk in his direction, and Cabba started to charge the energy on his hands.

"Stay back! I'm not afraid to shoot!"

She simply kept walking, grinning while at it.

"Stay back!"

And he shot a Garlick Buster. He missed at point blank.

She ignored it and raised her hand with the fruit.

"Take it, Cabba boy." she said, with a soft voice. "Use the fruit's juice, and you will be able to save her. We will start a new Sadala, a new generation for our race, no longer being pawns of this pointless conflict."

The spiky fruit as he once saw it, many years ago. The warm feeling, the tempting texture of the magical souvenir, capable of making you stronger. He was tempted, as he always wondered what it tasted like.

But he refused, and smacked her hand, throwing the fruit to the floor.

"Get real!" he screamed, "I'm a Saiyan of Sadala, my allegiance is with the royal family, that's why I wear this torn blue uniform. I'm not afraid of some lonely psychopath!"

She started to laugh.

 _Guess he refused._

That voice again. He heard it clearly, and was looking around.

 _In truth, a new order shall start with the Saiyans._  
 _But evolved beyond the limitations of their race._

"What is that voice?! Who's talking?!" Cabba shouted to the laughing Taura.

"Cabba my dear. You think a revolution starts with only one person?"

And the Earth started to shake again.

* * *

The earth was shaking again, and the soldiers were caught by it. Pirina stood up and grabbed Caulifla like a bag much to her vocal annoyance, and he extended his arm to forcefully set them aside. The plan of hiding was abandoned immediately when he started to fly like crazy.

"Hey, what do you mean an extinction bomb?"

"Is a weapon by the Galactic Patrol, a strong virus that will kill all human life on the planet! Is used in extreme situations!"

"What? But that dude Frost is inside the tree too! Are they planning on killing him too?"

He then noticed. No one was following them, he couldn't sense any energy coming in his direction. He could however hear screams from behind, and something that was hurting his hearing.

Pirina looked at the earth, and he couldn't understand what he was seeing.

Something was coming from the earth, some strange creatures looking like some sort of plants. If you want to have an advantage against Namekians, you should do noises capable of hurting their sensitive ears like whistling. The screeches of those creatures were close to that.

The creatures started to attack the Saiyans on the ground, with their long arms taking them off guard. The Saiyans started to launch energy attacks, and for a minute they were successful in killing those, but the things returned to be. They were shocked, and one of them was foolish enough to fly away, escaping from that place and leaving the rest of them fighting back.

However, one of the creatures started to scream in that guy direction and from a pair of wings came out of his back. He managed to trap the man in his arms, and the poor bastard was screaming for help.

"Just... what the hell are those inhuman things?" Pirina muttered.

He then remembered the girl in her arm, and she was trembling while looking at the scene.

"What... what is going on?" she muttered.

"Well, I'm not the only captain today," he said while flying slowly away from the ground. He was trying to not caught those things attention.

The winged monster landed on the ground, and started to scream again at the tree's direction. Pirina's ears were hurting like crazy. The thing then launched an energy beam from his mouth at the top of the tree, as more of those creatures were getting out of the ground.

* * *

He jumped with a high speed in her direction,and started to punch her repeatedly everywhere, but she was hardly touched. She jumped to the top of the cave and charged her hands in the form of a ring, but by the time she launched it, Cabba so did by kicking energy waves, destroying the ring.

His blood was burning like crazy in that heated place, trying to find a way to beat the champion, as she wasn't even tired. Cabba knew it now, she hardly did anything during the games so when the time came, she could be all rest up while any survivor would be exhausted by comparison.

"Hey, Cabba boy!" she shouted while falling to the ground. "I commend your bravery, but you can't defeat me."

Cabba cleaned his mouth. He was shaking in fear, but he couldn't give up: is not something Frost would do.

"I don't care how many of that damn fruit you ate!"

By the time he finished saying that, she punched him so hard in the stomach he was sent to the ground. The fall was painful, and his naked back fell the painful spines hurting. She decended with huge speed and elegance, and raised her open hand at him, ready to fire another blast.

"Be glad, you'll die with scars, just like a true warrior."

 _CRASH!_ , the wall crumbled behind her, and a giant metal fist punched Taura in the face. Magetta did his usual train sounds, and he was happy to see him again. Magetta raised his feet and was prepared of crushing the fallen champion on her floor.

"Get out of my sight, you pathetic teapot looking retard!" she shouted.

And his determination changed, the furious metal giant went was no more, but he started to tremble being quite sad. In a fetal position, he started weeping being unable to move. Taura stood up, with a lot of blood coming out of her head. Cabba saw her eyes, and the expression from before happened again: cold fury. She was looking at her blood in her hand.

"Pathetic creature!" she said in a quiet tone of voice, pointing at Magetta's floor. "How about you die already?!"

And the dark substance from before appeared again under the steel giant, but he was so focused on his weeping he couldn't notice. He was slowly absorbed by it.

"That pest. Explain to me why would you ally yourself with such a ridiculous looking creature."

She then pointed her arm at him again.

"Forget it, I don't care."

Cabba couldn't move, being exhausted in the floor. He couldn't think straight, with many thoughts crossing his head: his friend Magetta, his family, Renso, and even Caulifla. Kora was lying around too, possibly dying of thrist. He then remembered his uncle, the man he never knew but that his father respected so much. He wondered how he died. Like a coward by trying to run away? Like a warrior trying to survive? Or maybe as an accident?

Why is he thinking about this stuff?

Taura was about to shoot, but she was stopped by something: she was hit by an energy ray in the back.

She crouched with a wound in her stomach, with her teeth clenching in pain.

"Finally found you, miss Taura. You made quite a racket here."

That voice. Cabba recognized that voice. It was him, his hero!

"Frost!" Taura shouted.

* * *

 **Author note: Human species mean any sentient life form. The term human doesn't mean "Earthling" in this setting. Those creatures are complete beasts, and not sentient.**

 **Like most movie villains, Turles was a re-read of another character in the main continuity, in this case, his inspiration was Vegeta, with a dash of Raditz (and he was named like that in a foreign dub). Turles is quite redundant to the series, and the only real interesting outlook he brings is a look at Goku without hitting his head as a baby. Do you think the tale of the evil Kakarot would be a sad one considering the Dragon Ball Minus origins? Is funny to think that.**

 **Maybe Turles wasn't adapted in Multiverse because of that evil Goku in there making him redundant, but Multiverse has more problems than Super and GT combined.**

 **It was hard to write a Turles analog taking out the one feature he is known for, and I used some of his traits from Xenoverse 2 with my own spin. I think I did an alright job.**

 **I think George Lucas is gonna sue me for using some of his terms.**


	13. The Ikonda King

**Author's note: Thanks for your kind words. I would love to write more slice of life scenarios, but I'm not particularly interested in romance. I could try writing it just to give it a try.**

* * *

 **Frost and the Ikonda King**

 **XIII**

Taura was in front of him, bleeding through both the stomach and the head while crouched. Yet, Cabba couldn't move to do something, lying on the ground exhausted.

"Now, now, miss Taura. Is time for you to give in." Frost said, although Cabba couldn't see him from the ground. Taura however, chuckled.

"You were the one I was looking for, Frost."

A _crack_ sound came from the ground, and something appeared beside Taura's, while she was slowly being engulfed by the ground. When she disappeared, Cabba saw two horrifying creatures, bipedal monsters that appeared to be made of vines, with a large mouth and no eyes. Cabba tried standing up, worried about Kora as she was still on the ground.

The two creatures jumped at Frost direction, with him striking back with his fists. The screams of those creatures were like a nail on a blackboard, as they were punched. Frost then shot a blast at them through the power of his arm. The vision was blurry, but Cabba was sure there was something off about Frost.

"Hey kid! Hang in there!"

The voice of another man, a familiar voice.

"Hang in there..."

 _Pum!_

A light of energy was thrown at Cabba, but it didn't hurt. On the contrary, it helped him open his eyes and regain part of his strength. He looked at the person who gave him that energy, a man wearing a green uniform and a pair of broken yellow goggles.

"Good to see you alive and kicking kid."

"Mister Cress! You're alive!" Cabba shouted, happy to see him. "What did you do to me?"

"I shared some of my energy with you. Let me tell ya, this method can help soldiers in hurry, but is not as effective as the classic healing method."

With his sight recovered, he saw the scene more clearly: Frost was fighting the two monsters with his own arms, and not only that, Frost was bigger than Cabba ever has seen him. He was a giant! Cabba was both confused and amazed at the scene.

The monsters tried to take a bite at Frost with their sharp mouths, but Frost fists were faster and stronger. No matter how much Frost destroyed them, they kept regenerating, but he didn't give up. He kicked the two at the same time and with his hand raised at them, shot a barrage of energy blasts. The creatures still didn't give in.

"Don't force me to go all out, you vile pests!"

Cabba stood up, although with some difficulty, and wanted to shoot at the monsters but Cress stopped him with his hand.

"Let them to Frost and await your orders. Look, help me with Kora, quickly!"

"Y-yes sir!" Cabba replied with a salute very quickly, and they went to her direction. Cress touched her head, and started using a weird technique Cabba had never seen, while Cabba put himself behind her making sure to support with energy fire at Frost if the monsters went to their direction.

She was still on the ground, unconscious. Her uniform was torn apart due to fight with the Metal Men earlier, with a hole revealing part of her back. Cabba saw it, and then remembered that part was burned due to the Metal Men's pit, but it was unhurt.

"You see anything wrong, kid?" said Cress.

"Yes sir! Miss Kora was hurt in here, but now is fine."

"Strange. We'll talk about it in a while, hold it."

And Cress's goggles started to shine, as Kora came back to. She stood up very quickly and pointed her hands at Cress, before realizing she was back in action. The moment she saw Frost fighting with the two monsters, she was shocked.

"Ok... what did I miss?" were her first words.

She jumped in the emperor's direction, and with a furious scream, she launched an attack from her right hand with an energy of a scarlet color.

"Crush shield!"

And a barrier of light trapped the two monsters inside, just like Renso did with Magetta earlier. The monsters were screeching inside the ball. Seeing it, Cabba shouted quite surprised by this development.

"Miss Kora! I didn't know you knew that technique!"

She gave her hand to Frost, who kindly accepted it.

"That was marvelous, accept my humble thanks," Frost said.

"I-is not a p-problem sir."

She, however, didn't look so well, having difficulty standing up. She almost fainted herself, but Frost quickly grabbed her.

"What's wrong?"

"I... I don't know sir. I'm exhausted."

Cabba and Cress walked in their direction, with Cress taking care of Kora. Without the worry of the monsters, Frost started to flex his arms a bit. Cabba, being on the same room as his idol made him quite nervous and thrilled, the situation be dammed, and quite innocently asked the following question:

"Mister Frost, why are you so big?"

Frost response, however, wasn't quite happy.

"Do you kiss your mother with that mouth, child?"

"N-no! I mean, you're supposed to be as small as me! Yet, you are the biggest person in here!"

"Ah," Frost said quite relieved. "Well, this is a transformation of mine. I got out of my wall thanks to it, and helped Cress to get out of his wall. How did you get out of the wall?"

"My friend helped me!" Cabba replied. "The Metal Man I was fighting with knew where I was, and helped me get out and take out Kora from the wall too."

Frost looked quite surprised, yet didn't emote much.

"Why didn't you take anyone else? And why isn't the Metal Man with you?"

Cabba then saddened.

"I'm not sure sir. We tried taking someone else, but it looked like one of these creatures," and he pointed at the screeching creatures in the energy sphere. "I didn't want to risk hurting anyone. I encountered Taura, and with some weird technique took Magetta out of the room."

"I see, Magetta was the Metal Man, right? " was Frost response. "I saw her fighting you. Do you want to add anything about it?"

Cabba took a breath to arrange his thoughts.

"Taura was responsible for all of this, sir. She somehow made this... tree, right? I dunno, I heard the voice of some woman..."

"Yeah, we heard it too. Please, continue."

"Ok! Well, she said she was using the fruit made from this tree to start a revolution, to start a new era! The fruit of the Tree of Might, I think is called. Is a spiky fruit that increases your strength by a lot, sir!"

Frost stood a moment completely silent, seeing at the creatures contained in the sphere.

"Was the technique you mentioned purple, by any chance?" he said, with his hand on his mouth, thinking.

"Yeah. She took the fruit from that purple thingy."

"I see."

"Do you know what it its, my lord?" Cress asked.

"Not a clue!" Frost said, with a big smile. "But a revolution? Wow, if I had a penny for every wannabe wanting one, the entire galaxy wouldn't be suffering food loses. But the most important question is, what technique did you use on Kora, Cress?"

"My lord, is a technique I learned in my journeys called _Dorenanina_ , with the power of giving an adrenaline boost to anyone. Is as good as a healing technique."

"Well, that's interesting. You need to teach it to me later, when we get out of here. Anyway, I've been trying to contact my forces, but the dark aura surrounding this place makes it hard. If I were to make a guess, I'll say this is a double-edged sword, as Taura couldn't sense us either and had to retreat."

The place started to shake again, and while the Saiyans took cover, Frost stood still looking above with his hand on his mouth with a silent expression. The monsters were still screeching in the bubble.

"Miss Kora, I remember the Metal Man breaking free during the games. Will the bubble break?" Frost asked with a nonchalant mood while the place was still shaking.

"Y-yes sir! Is better if we get moving already!"

"You are correct. Do you need help?"

"I think I do, sir. I'm not feeling so good."

"Cress, take her with you. Everyone, we must hurry to find an exit, who knows what is going on outside of this tree. Come, everyone!"

* * *

They flew across the inside the tree, following Frost. Just like with Cabba, Cress helped Kora by carrying her, as she was still too dizzy to stand on her own. Cabba felt calmer now that he had company alongside him, especially from his hero, but he couldn't help but worry about Magetta. What did Taura do to him, exactly?

Cabba flew real close to his hero, who appeared to know his intention as he slowed down his flight.

"Mister Frost, permission to speak!"

"Please, just call me Frost, child."

"O-ok! Frost!" Cabba replied, blushing. "Who do you think Taura is working with? She said a revolution doesn't start with one person, and we don't know who is the woman we heard before!"

"I was asking myself about that. This kind of attack is quite new to me, but I can bet my soul that she is working with a member of the Space Pirates, and this is a new type of technology. That purple power she uses must be from that woman."

"The voice said something about the "love of the gods"."

"Bah!" Frost said, laughing. "Revolutionaries always think their crimes are justified by divine will, is a cliche by now my child. I have met the gods, they are more busy with their job than to preach anything else really."

Cabba tried to remain serious, as he wanted to geek out in the presence of Frost. He didn't even know there were gods beyond what his father told him about some legends regarding monsters. He wondered what they look like, perhaps thinking of them as scary guys, scarier than the creatures they have seen so far.

They kept flying, but the smell of wet plants didn't cease. If they were lucky, they'll be able to find a hole to escape to the outside and take the deepest breath on the outside they would ever do. The inside of the tree was not silent, as the echoes of the creatures could be heard from afar.

Cabba thought of something, and stopped flying with the group. He went backward, and charged the energy in his feets, launching it upwards as energy kicks. The strength of the energy was enough to make part of the top of the "cave" to break, leaving a hole in there.

"What the hell are you doing, you moron?!" Kora shouted with all her strength in her lungs, causing Cabba to bow in apology.

"I'm so sorry! I thought that while the walls have people inside, maybe the floor and roof were the exceptions!"

Frost walked toward him, and put his hand on his shoulder.

"Don't apologize child. Look, the hole opened a new path. I think you did well."

And he gave a thumbs up. Cabba wanted to geek out, but remained serious. Or tried to.

They flew upwards.

It looked exactly like the last floor.

"Well, isn't this wonderful," Cress remarked.

 _Just a few more moments and the conversion shall finish.  
Soon, everything will change..._

Cabba was creeped out by that woman's voice, as she once again spoke in their minds. The others did too, and they were creeped out, except for Frost. Frost was smiling, defiant of the voice.

"Yeah yeah, I heard that quite many times by villains who thought they could get away with their vile acts, my dear. You're no exception. Show yourself and give up, and perhaps I can find you a nice sentence for this crime."

Cabba was amazed by his bravery, but the voice simply laughed.

In front of them, a dark presence was felt.

Once again, the purple energy appeared on the ground, and someone was getting out of it. It was a four-legged creature of a metallic gray skin, with two red eyes but no mouth, looking directly at Frost. Everyone thought it looked like a tiger.

"Heh", Frost chuckled looking at him directly. "I didn't think a machine would be here of all places. State your name, creature, if you're capable of speaking that is."

The creature red eyes started to grow in brightness, and the Saiyans took a battle position while Frost kept calm speaking with the robot. Cabba never saw any robot before, but he heard of them. They were life forms created by people on distant planets, some were created for medical purposes but other for support in battles. Not many of them were smart.

"I am named Evaprimolca. Formerly the ruler of a mechanical kingdom in the planet known as Ikonda."

His voice was exactly everyone thought it would sound like, with a distorted mechanical voice. Frost stood amazed at the opponent. Cabba wondered what was going through his mind. Cabba himself never heard of planet Ikonda.

"Oh? And what are you doing here, your highness? Is there something I can do for you?"

From the eyes of the robot, a sharp energy beam was launched at Cabba's direction, but Frost at a high speed managed to slap it aside with his tail to one of the walls.

"I am here to capture you, Frost."

Cabba's heart was beating like crazy, and the heat coming from the wall could still be sensed. He was scared, but Frost wasn't. He simply took a step forward while pointing his finger at the robot.

"I heard that many times. Try updating your system."

And he started to shoot at the metallic tiger's direction with the red laser bullets coming from his fingers. The tiger didn't even attempt to dodge the energy bullets, simply staying firm on his spot taking everything the emperor threw at him. One shot hit it in the head, the second one in the leg, and a last one in the left eye.

The robot didn't even react.

"Aren't you going to move?" Frost asked.

"No."

"For such a king," Cress remarked keeping his battle position. "He doesn't strike me as the big deal. Let's crush them together while we can, my lord!"

However, Frost crouched. He was coughing in pain.

When the Saiyans notice, the emperor was bleeding, as if he was shot in the head, the leg, and the left eye. Everyone gasped in horror.

"I am named Evaprimolca. I don't feel pain, but everything you do to me will be felt by you. Surrender."

And from the background, many screeches could be heard.

* * *

 **Author's note: Evaprimolca is based on Turles minions in the Tree of Might movie. Instead of 5, we got one. To make him original, I decided to create an antagonist that you won't ever see in Dragon Ball: an animal fighter, instead of a humanoid or giant monster character.**

 **Evaprimolca's name comes from a company that makes sauzes. I originally wanted to name him Choco, but my Discord friends would possibly only think of the Chocolate bar that was frequently shown in commercials during's Dragon Ball Super's run.**


	14. The room inside the Tree

**I saw the Dragon Ball Super: Broly film. It was pretty good! I'm mostly surprised that Toriyama managed to write such a compelling character, and is Broly of all people! Of course, I do find that the movie is lackluster when it comes to the main characters, Goku and Vegeta are not interesting in any way compared to the last two movies where at least they had something to do beyond their usual fights.**

 **Just my opinion.**

* * *

 **The Room inside the Tree**

 **XIV**

 _There was a demon possessing the body of a princess, and the king was desperate to save her. He went to the guardian of the world, asking for a solution. The guardian told the king that in order to stop the demon, he needed a pure-hearted being._  
 _The king didn't know what exactly made someone's heart pure. He went to the sages of the entire world, and they gave a different answer. "They need to be young of heart", said one. "They need to be a strong-willed individual", said another. "Such a being only exists in legends", said the last one._  
 _The king was baffled by such vague answers. However, the demon itself showed up at the courtroom while still wearing the body of the princess._

 _"The pure-hearted being must be chosen by me", it said._

That was the start of the book _Romance of the Shooting Stars_. Its author, a man from planet Cinam, said it was based on a legend whispered through the cosmos. It didn't help the sales, though, as the book was a critical failure, and was sold cheaply through vendors in other worlds.

Cabba found the book in the market from inmigrant Tech-tech aliens, round-looking white beings that looked like marshmallows, even smaller than him. Saiyans can read, but they aren't known for reading fiction as their thirst for battle makes them too stubborn for it, but Cabba needed a hobby, and he decided to read the book in secret, and liking it a lot.

The reason he was remembering the book was due to Frost's situation mirroring a scene from the hero from the book. On the ground suffering damage caused by himself through trickery from the enemy. Cabba tried to jump in his help, but Cress hold him tight to stop him from interfering. The sounds of the monsters were behind their back, and Cabba's heart was racing.

Despite being wounded, Frost stood up, smiling like if nothing happened watching the mechanical tiger.

"Wonderful technique!", Frost shouted. "I haven't seen something like it before."

The tiger didn't say anything, merely standing still on his place with his bright red eyes looking at them.

"A mirror technique. If I hurt myself, I wouldn't hurt you, right?"

"Right." the tiger replied. "Even emperors bleed. Now surrender."

Frost was giggling. The monsters were getting closer, and Cress was still holding Cabba up.

"I never said the contrary, my friend Evaprimolca," Frost said still looking at him directly. "But tell me, what is stopping me from destroying this place and traping you under the dirt?"

The tiger didn't respond, but Cress shouted in response.

"But sir, what about the civilians trapped in this place?!"

"Haven't you been paying attention mister Cress? Those monsters I fought a while ago were pretty stubborn, no matter how much I broke their arms an legs, they kept regenerating. They also appeared to be born from this tree, the same place we were all captured. Do you see where am I coming from?"

Cabba wasn't following, and Cress didn't said a thing. Kora, however, was the first to open her mouth:

"They are Saiyans, and whatever species were at the Coliseum! They are immortal! No matter what we do, they won't suffer!"

Cabba was speechless. He wanted to say something, but couldn't think of anything. Are Those things his fellow Saiyans? Then that creature Magetta crushed his head... oh god.

"Correct," Frost said cleaning the blood from his body. His valiant attitude would be scary on anyone else, but on Cabba was of someone worth admiration, as he was laughing in the face of villainy. "Tell me my friend, this is a diplomatic question from the emperor to a king, why are you working with terrorists?"

"For honor towards a fallen friend."

The monsters were getting even closer, and Cabba was frightened, trying to escape from Cress arms. Why was he even doing?

"Let me go!" Cabba screamed "Can't you hear those monsters coming closer!?"

"I know! But I have to wait for the commander to give an order! Listen to your superior, rookie!"

"Your commander?! Rookie?! We are gonna get eaten, sir!"

"Indeed you will if you keep going like this," Frost said, completely calm at the situation while not taking his sight of the enemy. "Mister Cress, I have an order for you."

"Please, command us sir! What shall we do?"

"I want the child and the woman to leave, and stay with me."

And Frost raised his hand, and an incredible huge scarlet blast destroyed the upper half of the cave. Through the hole a small light could be seen, but a very timid one. Cress left go of Cabba, who didn't want to leave the place.

"B-but sir!" Cabba protested trying to get close to the emperor, but the hand of Kora stopped him. Her grab wasn't very strong, no doubt because she was still exhausted. Cabba refused to say anything further, grabbed her comrade and started to fly. Evaprimolca started to shoot from his eyes at Cabba, but similar to the many trainings at the Meteor Desert, Cabba dodged them flawlessly.

He was long gone, leaving Frost and Cress alone with the mechanical tiger king. While flying towards the light, Cabba felt a giant light coming from behind, having an incredible energy that eclipsed anything on that place.

* * *

The more time passed, the more monsters came from the floor. The place was infested with creatures, looking like some sort of anthill gone crazy with their screeches, with many of them shooting beams at the giant tree and whoever got close to fighting them. Many Saiyans from the Sadala Force tried to fight them, but no matter how many limbs were ripped by their strength, the monsters kept regenerating, outnumbering the Saiyans.

For once in her life, Caulifla felt fear. The Namekian with her was flying away from that place while still holding her. He felt sorry for her, as she lost her brother, and seeing those creatures broke her fighting spirit. If those monsters couldn't be defeated by strength alone, then retreat was the only option now.

"To simply give up..." she muttered.

"Look, I understand how you feel. But sometimes, even the mighty warrior race must retreat, got it?" the green man said. "We must find one space ship quickly, before the Galactic Patrol releases that bomb."

"Yeah... yeah... I know..." she said, with a somber tone in her voice. _Was she ready to cry?_ , Pirina wondered.

They arrived at a small town, which was empty as everyone evacuated to the flying ships. Luckily for them, the monsters were only close to the tree. There was a pretty big store with the words "Suybe's Spaceships" on the roof, and they went inside to see all the vehicles that were intact.

"They all look like junk!" Caulifla shouted. "Who would ever buy these outdated models?"

"Junk or not, we're gonna need one of these to fly off this planet. I wonder if there is an instruction manual somewhere..."

"You don't know to fly?! What the hell man!"

"Look, my friend was the driver, I was the one who did the heavy lifting ok?! Now let me find the ship' manual, quickly!"

It took a while, but they managed to find a ship with help. It was a very small ship where Pirina was barely able to enter, with Caulifla too feeling uncomfortable, and was equipped with a basic artificial intelligence from the Tech Tech race that could fly for them. It was the most expensive one, no doubt the owner will be angry when he finds out, if he still lives anyway.

The ship jumped to the skies, trying to avoid the look of the patrollers.

"This is way too uncomfortable! Besides, where are you going to left me later, green man?"

"I'm wondering about it too. I can't go with the Galactic Patrol, they will arrest me!" He shouted. "Say, what about going with me to Planet Namek?"

"Are you out of your mind?! What am I gonna do there?"

"Be safe from this place. For a while, anyway."

Caulifla didn't know what to respond and merely stood quietly. She looked at the skies and saw the Galactic Patrol's spaceships flying aboard the planet. The idea of the Extinction Bomb was wild, a simple weapon that was prepared to kill anything that lives on a planet. Why did the Galactic Patrol even had those bombs?

One of the ships hatches opened, as they both noticed. A man wearing a crown was holding a small capsule, putting it inside a gun.

"That's the bomb, right?" Caulifla asked. Her heart was racing a bit.

"It appears to be the case. Quite small, if you ask me."

The man pointed at the tree, and shot the bomb in its direction.

Caulifla saw the tree, trying to not break. If her brother was alive, he would die by the bomb.

The bomb was stopped midair by one of the monsters, who put the capsule inside a giant energy sphere of scarlet color. Caulifla screamed in shock, that red sphere couldn't be mistaken.

"The Crusher Shield! That's my brother's technique!"

The monster then punched the sphere to the deepest of space, and wherever the bomb exploded, life on Sadala would still be alright, human or one of those parasites.

Caulifla opened the hatch, with Pirina trying to stop her.

"What are you doing you brat?! They are gonna kill you!"

"My brother is that thing! I'm gonna go there, you want it or not!"

And she jumped across the skies, flying to the giant tree again. The Namekian didn't bother following her.

"Kill yourself if you want, I won't stop you!"

And he left the planet.

* * *

Cabba and Kora were flying to the light. Cabba was tired of being useless, he wanted to help and not being a nobody in the whole conflict. Frost and Cress were fighting Evaprimolca, and he was doing nothing but run away with a comrade he didn't even know entirely.

 _Focus Cabba, focus. Your comrade is right beside you, you need to follow your superior order of trying to keep your cool... oh, who am I kidding? The whole world is ending and I'm being useless!... I'm..._

Cabba was crying.

"Hey!"

Kora put her hand on his head.

"I... don't know what to tell you. To be completely frank, I'm scared out of my mind kid just like you. But, don't cry, as long as we stick together, I'm sure we can defeat whatever crosses our path. We're Saiyans, after all!"

"I..." Cabba tried to speak, but he was too nervous to do it. "Thank you..."

 _Welcome to my room._

They crossed the light, but instead of the exit to liberty, they were instead inside a giant room painted in red. The room had a giant seed put in the middle like some sort of pedestal while dozen if not hundreds of spiky fruits surrounded it. The moment Cabba saw them, he was close to having a heart attack.

"What the... what is this place?!" Kora said, putting herself in front of Cabba, who was too scared to even react.

There was nobody in that room. No, there was one person.

A woman was flying down, with elegance as her bat-shaped wings put her on the floor. A woman of silver hair and long pointy ears, wearing a green uniform of the Sadala Defense Forces was looking at them while holding a small pink diamond in her hands. The woman spoke, and they knew it was the voice they heard through the entire place.

"Greetings you pair of sugar lumps. What can I do for you?"

* * *

 **Author's Note: I had a lot of work during December, so I couldn't write this. I had time, and manage to write this in a bit of a hurry. Next chapter is a huge fighting chapter, so wish me luck. More information about these two new characters inspiration and notes will be posted later.**


	15. The Gardener

**Thanks to Ekrolo2 for helping with this chapter.**

* * *

 **The Gardener**

 **XV**

There was something seriously wrong with that woman.

The Tree of Might was a mess of different energies merging into one place, and it was hard to tell where was what, yet her dark presence stood up like a sore thumb, like an anteater in an ant colony.

She was smiling like a child looking at them without even opening her eyes, floating through the floor slowly getting closer. Kora was charging energy through her arms, preparing it in case she found Taura, and was prepared to shoot.

"Rookie, behind me! Touch my back!"

Cabba, despite the fear of seeing the countless fruits in the room, followed the order without question.

"Begone, you!" she shouted while releasing a powerful purple sphere across the room. The size of the blast was remarkable as it filled the entire room, and the potency was enough to destroy an entire planet's sector, a power only an Elite Saiyan would be able to do.

Many of the fruits were destroyed and others fell to the ground. Yet the woman of uncanny appearance was shining in green, untouched by the blast.

"Impossible! That was my best shot, how did you... what did you even do?!"

She simply smiled, with nothing changing about her expression.

"What a cute child," she said while caressing her own face with her delicate hands," I wish to see him closer."

Cabba, with the broken armor and blood on his body, was trembling in fear. Kora stood in front of him, acting as a comrade in arms and something of a big sister, prepared to defend him.

"Try it and I will murder you."

"I...I'm not someone that needs defending!" Cabba protested putting himself on fighting position. "As long as we stick together, we can defeat anyone, right miss Kora!"

The woman giggled quite seductively and started to shine in a bright green color. They kept looking at her ready to attack, but a hand touched Cabba's left cheek, from behind him. He tried to look, but was trapped in a collection of vines coming from the floor. He screamed in pain, feeling his mere flesh being drained by the second, and as quickly as he did Kora tried to save him but was stopped by more vines coming from the woman of her side.

There were two of them, as she cloned herself.

"What... what is this sorcery?!" Kora shouted. A curious sound was heard in the room, and she saw how a woman with hedgehog-shaped hair was emerging from a purple substance.

"Yes, sorcery. And it all came from her." Taura smiled quite proud looking at Kora being attacked by the Tree's vines. The moment Taura came into the room, the woman that was with Cabba looked in her direction, and quickly went to her, hugging her while caressing her face, and Taura didn't stop her from doing so.

"Beloved! Are you feeling better?" She asked Taura with her fox face. Taura kept smiling.

"Indeed, took a while to recover. Despite everything, I could still be beaten by Frost and some Metal Man, but now it shouldn't be a problem. Do you have what you wanted, right?"

"Oh, yes! I knew it was so pure, but never thought it was something like it!"

Cabba screamed, trying to release energy to burn the vines, but it was useless, and his hands were tied. The feeling of bleeding was nothing compared to what he was feeling. Kora struggled trying to get out of her trap. She was confused, as there we two of that woman alongside the traitor. but managed to free herself by cutting the vines with energy blades. _Taura said sorcery, right?_

"Witch!" Kora jumped in Taura's direction ready to strike her down with a Crusher Shield, yet the Witch did circular movements with her hands, and in a couple of seconds, Kora hit herself against the wall. Quickly, she flipped over and jumped again at their direction, but only ended up falling again.

"Is useless, stranger," Taura remarked. "I love your uniform, by the way, dig the pink."

The witches were giggling while Cabba was still screaming in pain. Kora stood up, looking at her directly. Taura wasn't like she remembered: she was completely pale, and her skin was no longer her usual, but one of pure gray skin. Did that happen because of that fruit she heard so much about?

Kora grinned while still trembling.

"Nice collection. What was your revolution? To build a fruiterer and make everyone a bunch of mindless minions? Was that your master plan?"

Taura laughed quite hysterically, while the witches were giggling alongside her. Kora jumped again, but the witch' magic kept making her fail her punches. While she kept trying to strike her down, Taura started to monologue.

"A new chapter for the history of the planet is being written right before you. Saiyans, tainted by being pawns in a never-ending conflict brought by Frost and pirates like Lusk, can never clean themselves of their crimes, passing them to the new generation such as you. As such, I found a solution: to transform them into something else."

She then stopped one of Kora's punches, and threw her to the ground.

"You would never understand. You call yourself an Elite, yet you're green. I've been in this war for decades, and saw many of my comrades die before me! What can you say for yourself?"

Taura then kicked Kora in the face, with enough strength to break a normal person's skull. She held her down while she was screaming. Kora was bleeding, and with every strength, she had kicked Taura's face with her feet, and while it hurt, Taura didn't move.

"My comrades," Taura continued with a soft tone, "all of them dead, with their blood and ashes in my hands. You couldn't understand it."

"I could, many of mine died today because of you!" Kora's entire body was radiating by her aura, with her entire body burning, yet Taura didn't release her.

"Crusher Shield!"

A sphere made of scarlet energy appeared trapping Taura, letting Kora take a breath.

She stood up with difficulty. Her vision was blurry, and with difficulty walking in the screaming child' direction. She once heard from one of her superiors that during war, protecting the comrades is the first rule of any warrior, and right now she couldn't left that kid die, yet the witch put herself in front of him, grinning with her annoying fox face.

"Move!"

"I'm afraid your fight isn't over, the sugar lump is all mine, woman," the witch said with her tongue out, holding a pink diamond on it.

And she wasn't wrong, as Kora saw the energy shield being broken right beside her with an explosion coming from the inside. Taura cleaned herself from the dust and started to walk towards her opponent. Kora was beyond scared as the gray woman put herself in front of her, looking with a stoic look while the boy's scream grew weaker in the background.

"My nephew created that technique. Did you seriously think I wouldn't look for a way to destroy it?"

Kora's heart beatings were out of control, and the pain in her head was unbearable. Her long black hair, bathed by her own blood was turning snow white out of fear beyond words.

Taura smiled.

"I'm still a Saiyan too, for now. I will give you a death worthy of the warrior race." she then looked at the witch right above her.

"Camelo, please heal the two of us."

Camelo touched Taura's face again while still floating above her.

"Are you sure, beloved?"

"I am. Do it."

And Camelo raised her hands, and radiation of healthy energy was sent to the two women. Kora vision came back and her bleeding ceased... no, she didn't remember ever feeling like this, a new person entirely. She saw the woman she had to face in front of her, smiling proudly.

"I have eaten the fruit of the Tree of Might countless times, making me the strongest Saiyan alive. Yet, I am merciful, you can eat the fruit too, to make this fight more equal."

Cabba was no longer screaming. Kora saw that the boy passed away while being held by the vines, with the second Camelo flying above him and caressing him, like a mother holding a baby, or something more obscene.

"Let him go and we will fight! He is just a child!"

"Exactly, that's why Camelo needs him. Now, grab the fruit or don't, prepare yourself."

With no other choice, Kora flew and grabbed one of the countless spiky fruits and took a giant bite out of it.

Her muscle mass increased! The feeling was something she never felt before! Exhilaration, the euphoria of the electricity going through her entire being, it was something only heard in legends!

"I see you're enjoying yourself. Good." Taura put herself in a battle position. "Come, to the death!"

"I won't hold my punches," Kora said, preparing herself to the fight.

* * *

Caulifla flew to the lion's den following his brother, with the wind hurting her sight. The countless monsters were horrifying to watch real close, smelling like putrefaction and vinegar, and she couldn't be more scared.

Yet, it was kinda exciting.

She landed on the floor, and the creatures were looking at her like tigers looking at a deer. She grinned despite the odds.

"Hey! Freaks! Have you never heard of me? I'm the prodigy of Sadala, and you're nothing but kittens to me, a golden lion!"

The monsters screeched, and one of them jumped in her direction. Caulifla responded with a kick to the head charged with her scarlet energy, breaking the monster's supposed skull.

 _"Mind if I take your move?"_ she thought to herself.

Then the rest of the monsters kept launching at her, but she managed to fight them all by spinning in the ground like a capoeira dancer, while launching different energy waves at them that destroyed their flesh, although temporarily.

There was an absolute truth regarding Caulifla: she was free. Free to be who she wanted to be, free to feel the wind in her face and to enjoy a good brawl without nobody telling her what to do.

That's who she was. She may be motivated to save her brother, but the truth is that she never felt so free before while fighting these enemies. They kept coming, and they kept regenerating, but she was free to keep fighting unlike never before.

They shoot at her immense putrid flashes from their mouth, and she flew dodging while shooting them down with all of her untapped potential, unleashing explosions everywhere.

 _Please, be safe._ She thought to herself, despite fully knowing she could be hurting him.

Punches after punches, kicks after kicks, Caulifla thought she could do that all day, but the reality was another.

* * *

At first, he stood quiet waiting for his prey to move, but the mechanical tiger had to move fast across the dark caves, retreating.

The king of Ikonda was not created to feel fear, but he wasn't made to be reckless either. The king's strength comes from his ability: the mirror force, a power that is perfect to kill any opponent by reflecting the damage done to him to the attacker. Yet, his opponent was the emperor of the universe, whose power he heard so much before.

While the two Saiyans escaped, Frost unleashed an unbelievable power enough to blast the vine creatures coming at him, as he transformed!

He tried shooting him down while at it, but it was pointless, he was too strong for his blasts!

He had to retreat and search for a better position. The monsters were screaming, hurt by Frost afar.

Then, a flash! Frost was in front of him appearing at high speed. He was no longer a horned giant, but the shape of his head changed with a more malicious look on him. According to the information he was given, it was a transformation named Assault mode, used in heated conflicts. He simply looked at him with his arms crossed, but Evaprimolca had his sensors activated so Frost couldn't simply blast him away.

"Running away isn't typical of rulers."

"No, but a good king must be protected by the other pieces"

Then hands made of vines came from the floor in order to trap him, but Frost shot them down with a blast in the shape of a double U that made the place explode. Yet, none of the explosions touched Evaprimolca, because Frost wasn't stupid once he caught the trick.

"I'm intrigued by this technology. Do you use some sort of infra-red sensor?"

"To reveal a secret would be foolish in my game," Evaprimolca said.

Frost grinned.

"I haven't had fun for a good while. And to think is against a terrorist with none of my techniques being effective against him, it makes me jealous of your nature."

"Will you surrender?"

"Not a chance."

He tried to move, but his fingers were dead frozen. The tiger was paralyzed, floating through the air, shooting some laser beams from his eyes towards Frost, but the famous hero simply moved aside like nothing and he couldn't point in his direction due to his paralysis.

It was the Saiyan of the yellow goggles, Cress.

"Telekinesis, I see," Evaprimolca said in his monotone voice, analyzing the situation.

"Good job, mister Cress," Frost said while not taking his eye on the tiger. "Do you think you would be able to move him outside?"

"I'll try sir, but is not easy! Please hurry!"

Frost looked at the nearby wall, and raised his finger, using a scarlet red energy blade to cut through the wood like a hot knife through butter. They were worried they would hurt the civilians trapped inside, but with their regeneration powers it was worth the effort to destroy the place from inside. The wall crumbled, and the sudden light of day blinded them for an instant.

Frost opened his eyes.

"Cress, throw him outside."

But Cress didn't follow the order.

"Mister Cress, hello?! I gave an order!"

But Cress didn't respond, as he fell to the ground, with Evaprimolca following suit in a more sophisticated cat manner.

"I inform you the knight is dead, _king_."

"B-but... how did you do that?" Frost asked, seeing the man in the ground. There was nothing weird about him, nothing. But then he saw at the tiger, with smoke coming from his back legs. It became clear to Frost. "You... you shot something from your backside?"

"Poison needles that pierce the skin and affect the nervous system, killing the target immediately. Warriors may grow stronger to the point they can destroy a planet, but at the end of the day they still have a nervous system that can be destroyed."

From the light of the hole, monsters appeared right in front of Frost with their infernal screech, leaving him cornered. One of the monsters jumped atop Cress and took a heavy bite off his neck, and if he wasn't dead before, he was now.

"I see. Clever bastard."

"Checkmate, emperor."

* * *

Caulifla kept fighting, but she was breathing with more difficulty while the monsters barely had a scratch. Her clothes only show scratches in her skin, and her fingers were starting to bleed due to the monsters durability.

Was she going to die in that place? _This is ridiculous. This infestation should be fought by the king and the forces, yet those cowards decided to left the moment a tree destroys the capital. I knew they were wimps, but for the strongest army in the galaxy, they are nothing but dirt._

 _"_ Damn it all!" She screamed, jumping with all her strength to escape. She felt dirty doing so, but she was exhausted and didn't think clearly. How long did she last fighting there? She didn't take time into consideration.

 _Damn it, I'm sorry bro._

Then a vine grabbed her by the leg, and she was trapped by one of the monsters. She shot its head off but the monster was persistent, and was prepared to bite her flesh off with its disgusting and dirty fangs.

"Get off me you beast!

Then, a beam of green color was falling in her direction with enough speed.

* * *

He couldn't breathe, with oxygen barely reaching his lungs.

He couldn't move. Not only his arms were slender like a putrid fruit, but his entire body was trapped by vines, and was barely able to see, with his vision being blurry.

He could hear voices. Women.

Two of them were fighting, with one of them screaming in intense pain, while a third voice was laughing. Who were they?

"Oh, the sugar lump woke up."

His chest was penetrated by something sharp, like a knife carving a pumpkin. Yet, his vision was returning, with the face of a woman in front of him smiling like a sneaky fox.

"Wakey wakey, pretty thing."

He noticed that what was piercing his chest were her fingers, not delicate but sharp like knives.

"Put him down, Camelo."

"Yes, beloved."

He was released and fell to the ground. He coughed with his naked chest bathing the floor with his blood. Was he dead? Was he dying? He wasn't sure. He raised his head to see at the woman of gray armor, barely scratched with her feet crushing a woman's head.

Then, Cabba remembered.

"Miss Kora!"

She was dead, with her body lying there bleeding, with vines sucking her entire body. She didn't have her pink armor on, in fact, one of the witches doppelgangers was holding it on her hands.

"She fought well," Taura said nonchalantly, "but she couldn't hold a candle to a champion's power."

"W-why..." Cabba could only mutter. He was beyond scared, the women in front of him weren't even people, they were demons themselves. "Why are you doing this? Why am I still alive?"

Taura crouched, looking directly at his face, with a cold expression in her face.

"I told you, blood was spilled in this war. I'm changing it all, forever. But, I needed her help first."

Cabba then saw the witch. She couldn't see it very well at first, but there was something familiar about her. Then, he knew who she was: she was the same woman that was with Taura the day that the Namekian's arms were ripped off, the same one that appeared alongside her in the posters back at the Coliseum.

Her maid and the one responsible for all of this.

"I'm Camelo, cutie," she said while cleaning Kora's pink armor with her magic, "its a pleasure to know what kind of blood your pure heart possesses."

Did he hear correctly? A pure heart? Like in the fantasy book?

His expression was noticed by Taura, who grabbed his head with pressure, like if she was trying to pluck a chicken.

"Indeed, a pure heart. We were planning on unleashing the Tree of Might the day Frost came to this planet in order to capture him, but I had another plan, one I wouldn't know if it would ever work."

"W-what are you talking about?"

"The Tree of Might absorbs the life force of a planet in order to sprout a fruit that can heal or fortify someone. The monsters you saw are our fellow Saiyans transformed into beasts, free of boundaries between non-combatants and warriors, with no diseases and the power to regenerate from any injury. We would be all equal, that's the perfect revolution!"

She then stood up.

"Yet, a pure heart was what I need for my one selfish desire."

She touched Camelo's face with an honest smile. "Ever since I met her on Planet Cinnam, she told me I needed someone with a pure heart, not tainted by impure thoughts or what I ever experienced. That was you, Cabba boy."

Cabba couldn't move due to the intense pain in his chest, but he saw how Taura then moved to the giant seed inside the room.

"How... how am I pure of heart?"

"Ho, you should know," Camelo said in a manly and familiar voice. In a split of a second, her figure changed in that of a an old man. It was doctor Yarrow. "I can sense every single one of my fruits, I know you took one of them, and instead of eating it, you use it to save a dying puppy. And when Taura tempted you again just a while ago you refused. I told you before, you had an oddity in your body, sugar lump," she smirked wearing the face of the doctor, "you were the final key."

Camelo opened her mouth, taking a pink diamond from her tongue.

"Let me tell you a tradition some warriors do," she started to say still using the body of Doctor Yarrow," when they die, some warriors are burned, with their ashes being thrown in the sea or the heartless space itself. Some Saiyans are known for that."

She raised her hand and the seed opened, and she threw the diamond inside of it.

"Some, however, create diamonds from their comrade's ashes, as a way to stay forever with them."

Then the seed started to make a screech similar to the vine creatures. Suddenly silence came.

The seed opened, and a naked man was thrown in the ground. Camelo snapped her fingers, and the man was wearing Kora's pink uniform.

The man, with some difficulty, raised his head, which Taura immediately hugged, sobbing.

"Brother..."

* * *

 **Author's note: In the notes about Turles's crew, it states that the** **twin brothers of the Crusher Corps were revived thanks to the Tree of Might's seed. They were from an ancient race, meaning they were nothing but ash and bones. I combined Taura, the reinterpretation of Turles, with the idea of the twins revived by the Tree of Might, but I rewrote how it worked to justify future concepts.**

 **How did Turles ever found out about the Tree of Might? Nobody knows, but I wanted Taura to have an answer, so I created Camelo. Who is she? You shall find out later. Her name is taken from the word for "candy" in Spanish, _Ca_ ra _melo_. She is based on a different franchise entirely, one that is quite underrated: Darkstalkers.**

 **I swear, the fact Evaprimolca is a mechanical tiger and Ikonda sounds similar to Wakanda are just coincidences. Evaprimolca himself took inspiration from Blade Wolf from Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance.**

 **I fully admit I took the diamonds idea from Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain.**


	16. The Loser

**We are getting closer to the ending! Only two or three more chapters to go!**  
 **A lot of thanks to Kagari for helping me with the grammar, I'll try to fix all the issues in the previous chapters once the fic is done.**

* * *

 **The loser**

 **XVI**

She didn't know where it came from, but a blast of green energy was thrown into the monster holding her, obliterating it. Without further ado, she flew away escaping from it, but was again surrounded by more creatures, jumping at her like a race on who eats her first. Very quickly she stretched her arms in their direction to shoot an energy blast, but was too tired to release any.

"Crap!"

Suddenly she was being pulled over by her back away from the monsters to safety. "Huh?", she noticed that a stretchy green hand was holding her. She was thrown into the ground, as the Namekian from before was alongside her.

"Brat! Are you ok?" he screamed.

"Yeah... thanks a bunch," Caulifla said, completely honest in her sincerity. "Why did you return?"

"I told you, I'm not a heartless monster. Come, let's escape while we can!"

Caulifla didn't know what to say. She wanted to save her brother, but she realized what a stupid mistake she made by staying in that place. There must be a way to change the monsters to their original state, but she didn't know how. How would she know?

* * *

She caressed his hair, as she once did many years ago. She was on the verge of tears of joy at seeing her brother again, who was looking at her very confused. He was like she remembered: tall with long spiky hair, similar to that of a hedgehog, and even though the pink armor was of a different model, it was a dead-ringer to his old model uniform. He was the first one to break the silence.

"Sis...?", he said with a soft voice, having trouble speaking. "You smell...different."

"Esparra, are you okay?"

He tried to stand up, but fell again with her stopping him from touching the ground.

"Please, stay still," Taura said while he was still trying to stand up. "You haven't recovered your strength."

"My strength...? Where are we?"

Esparra was moving his head to look everywhere, but couldn't actually see anything. Taura noticed, as his irises weren't black like coal, but red like an apple. His nose was sniffing constantly, trying to smell the place where they were as it was unfamiliar to him.

"Esparra, can you actually see me? Do you remember anything?"

"No, I can't. Why does this place smell so weird? There are so many energies in here, is odd..."

"It… it's just a cave," she said, trying her best to remain calm. "We found you on this cave, you were missing for a long time."

Camelo giggled behind them at the obvious lie, using the form of Doctor Yarrow. Esparra heard her.

"Is that... the doctor?"

"Indeed, he is. You were missing on this nameless planet but we found you. Your old friend Evaprimolca is here too, we all came for you."- She then helped him stand up by putting his shoulder beside her head. "Come, let's return home, to Planet Sadala."

"Eva...? Sadala...?" he then sniffed his nose, smelling something familiar on the ground. "Why is blood in this place?"

Taura saw how Cabba was crawling across the floor with difficulty towards Kora's corpse. She felt pity for the youth, but wasn't interested in him anymore. She obtained what she wanted from Cabba, and the plant monsters were multiplying by the minute for the revolution. The only thing that needed to be done was capturing Frost. No matter the size of the army, she couldn't simply kill him no matter how much she wanted to, as he was necessary for the invasion of other planets to work.

"It's nothing. That in front of you is just the blood of members of Lusk's clan that trapped you; we had to take them down."

"Indeed, a child," Camelo said smirking while looking at Cabba.. "Would you believe a pirate is using children for his treacheries?"

"Lusk... that name..."

The place started to shake, as Esparra started to release energy from his body in pure anger. The aura released was of scarlet color, with black taints. Taura was surprised by her brother's aura, as it was nothing like when he was alive.

Camelo put her hand on his shoulder, speaking with the calm voice of Yarrow.

"Lusk is arrested, my good friend. Frost captured him."

He stopped releasing energy. Camelo winked at Taura, and she understood that reviving with the power of the Tree of Might caused alterations to someone's body. Her brother was in a delicate state. She was more than impressed with her - she could not only take the form of anyone she wished, but she could also mimic someone she never met.

No matter. They had to move on, at least to relive memories and enjoy their time until the conversion.

With difficulty, Cabba stood up. He was bleeding through his chest, and quite frankly looked pathetic, but she was impressed by his determination. She wasn't lying when she said she didn't remember seeing someone so young in the Coliseum games, bringing back memories of her childhood. With a rough and somber voice, Cabba spoke.

"My uncle died..."

Esparra heard him clearly and focused his sight (even if he couldn't see) to Cabba. He smelled him from the distance.

"A child... " he said, with a soft and understanding voice. "D-Did Lusk killed your uncle?"

Camelo was preparing her magic to obliterate the child, but Taura had to stop her using her hand. If Esparra felt Camelo's magic, he would start to become suspicious and release more energy. Didn't Camelo know a spell to turn Cabba into a frog, or to make him say what she wanted to hear?

"My uncle died during the wars," Cabba continued speaking. "and there... there is not a single day where my father doesn't miss him – he even named me after him. I don't know how he died, and quite frankly I don't care. I'm just worried about my family, who I'm sure came to see me in the games. They wanted me to honor his memory."

"Your family came... to see you attack us?" Esparra quoted confused, as Camelo was using her magic to make him hear things differently, as she needed. Taura, however, knew Cabba wasn't talking with him, but with her directly.

"Esparra, I'm gonna take care of this powder goblin. Follow the doctor, he will take you to Eva."

Esparra was too tired to respond, but Camelo put his arm over her shoulders and using her magic opened a portal in front of them. She was starting to move but Taura stopped her with her hand, and pointed her finger at Cabba.

"Are you sure you want that?" Camelo asked.

She nodded.

Camelo then raised her hand, and Cabba was starting to regain his energy as the healing aura surrounded him. He was no longer bleeding, and his wounds were healed, like if he just woke up from a nap. Camelo smirked in his direction before leaving the room through the portal.

Cabba was confused, looking at his hands. He saw Taura, who was cracking her knuckles.

"Why?" was Cabba's only word.

"You wanted to be a member of the elite, right?" she said while stretching, "It's only fair you get a warrior's death; it'd be cheap I let you bleed out."

"N-No!, why did you do this? You robbed the present of many just to revive your past! What about Renso and Caulifla, who you turned into monsters too!"

Taura remained silent, simply walking around Cabba. She was looking at him with the same expression she had before the tree emerged: void of compassion or mercy. She wanted to kill Cabba, to honor the warrior race tradition.

"Your uncle was named Cabba, right?" she chuckled. "Never heard of him, he was probably a nobody that died like a fool by friendly fire."

Cabba was still shaking, but the expression in his eyes changed. He was getting angrier. Good, Taura thought.

"D-Don't speak ill of my family..."

"Or what? Will you fight me, and die like the stranger on the floor?"

Cabba stood quietly while Taura kept walking around him, hiding his sight. She stopped in front of him.

"You haven't shed blood yet, and you want to be an elite." Cabba was looking at Kora's body right beside him, while listening. "No one forgets their first kill, doesn't matter the intention, it symbolizes the time a warrior grows."

Taura shot an energy blast to the roof, making many of the fruits of the Tree of Might fall right in front of Cabba.

"I've seen you grown, yet you're no different from the day I met you. I'm giving you the opportunity to fight on equal terms with the champion. Die as a boy, or live as a warrior."

Cabba grabbed the fruits from the floor in a hurry, with both hands occupied looking at her directly.

"In...in the name of Frost and the people of Sadala, I will defeat you!"

* * *

Frost was surrounded and defeated, a first for him. It wasn't a loss in raw power as he is clearly the superior fighter, but in strategy alone, as the mechanical tiger's unique power made him impossible to defeat without killing himself. Like a king in chess - the king is the weakest and yet most important piece of the game, but it can move anywhere so it can escape and defend himself. That was a good comparison for Evaprimolca: despite his weakness in power, the mirror force made him impossible to defeat as long as he had those pawns in the vine creatures.

"I could destroy this tree alongside the whole planet if I choose to, to cease your vile plans of course", Frost said with a slight irritation while one of the monsters was putting a metal collar on him, made to suppress the energy of prisoners. "To think I, an emperor, would have to wear this thing made for common thugs."

"But aren't politicians just thugs, your highness?" Evaprimolca said.

"Hold your tongue, this thing will not stop me forever."

"I wouldn't know, my purpose was to capture you."

"By whom? Who gave you the order? Taura? What is your relationship with her? I never heard of a king turning mercenary!"

"You ask too many questions, keep silent," Evaprimolca said while his red eyes turned off and he walked towards the exit Frost opened. "I'm trying to take a break, I'm an old machine after all. Follow me."

Frost followed him outside the tree, where the sky was filled with spaceships of the Saiyans and the Galactic Patrol - no doubt looking for his presence. The land there was surrounded by countless disgusting monsters made out of the infernal tree. The air was tense, but he won't lie by saying he enjoyed the fresh air as he had enough of that tree, and it was easier to sense energy.

He couldn't sense anyone but the vine creatures on the planet, while everyone else was on the ships.

"If they see me, they'll come to attack you." Frost grinned.

"Not while the vine creatures are around. They are afraid of them."

Frost's smile disappeared. He tried to think of something, but what exactly? If he attacked Evaprimolca right there, he would either poison him with his needles coming from behind him (how obscene, Frost thought) or he himself would die by receiving his own strength. What an annoyance. If he tried to run, the monsters would attack him. I guess it truly is checkmate, he thought.

A sound happened, similar to that of a door opening, and Frost looked in its direction. In the middle of the field, a purple portal similar to the one Taura used inside the tree was opening, with two people getting out of it. They were two Saiyans... but something was not right about them, with the old man's energy being absurdly vile, while the younger one wearing a pink armor had something off about his appearance, but Frost couldn't say exactly what.

The two men walked as the portal closed, and Evaprimolca jumped at their direction at high speed. The young Saiyan crouched and hugged the mechanical tiger like a boy that hasn't seen his pet in many years. Frost was understandably confused by that scene, so he walked directly to them with the old Saiyan looking at him with fearsome eyes. What did he have to lose?

"Your presence was missing, Phototaurus's killer," Evaprimolca said with his monotone voice.

"Eva, old buddy! You still smell the same as always!" the young Saiyan said while still hugging the tiger. His nose started to move like crazy when he sensed someone coming closer, sniffing constantly until he looked at Frost. "Lord Frost, is that you?"

The old Saiyan raised his hand at Frost, and the emperor started to shake, as if he was being touched.

"Yes, it is I, " Frost said without him wanting to.

"It is an honor to know you're here sir." Esparra kneeled in from of him, with his head down and all. Frost was more confused now. "I don't remember how I ended up in that cave sir, but I didn't expect you to come too. I'm not that worth it."

What the hell is this man talking about? Who is he?

"Ah, young Esparra, it's no issue. After all, you are one of my finest soldiers." Frost said again without him wanting to. What the hell? Esparra?Frost thought to himself, But that man died a decade ago, he saw how he was incinerated too, how is he still alive?

"No doubt thanks to you sir," Esparra replied, and then stood up, smiling. "I can't wait to return to Planet Sadala with all of you."

But we are on Planet Sadala! He looked at him again and remembered who he was now, but there was something wrong with him: his eyes were red, and his skin was not right either – it was an unnatural gray color.

Was he a walking corpse?

"Well," Esparra said smiling like a child, "What are we waiting for? Let's return home!""

The old man lowered his hand and pointed at the ground where they were, and soon it started to shine in bright colors as a pod emerged from underneath.

"I'll wait for your sister to come, but all of you should enter the ship now." Said the old man, and Evaprimolca followed suit, even making round movements on a spot before resting up like a cat. Frost had no choice but to follow, with the interior of the ship looking like a sort of hotel room. However, Esparra didn't, as he was constantly sniffing toward the horizon.

"What's wrong? Move it, son!"

"No..." he said.

"No? What do you mean no?"

"I smell him. This familiar smell..." and the earth started to shake once again as Esparra was releasing energy in a fit of anger that was breaking the ground the ship was on."A Namekian, it's Lusk!"

And Esparra flew away screaming. Evaprimolca stood up in a hurry and ran after him while the old man simply watched the scene.

"Complications?" Frost asked with an audacious grin on his face.

"Heh," the old man replied with a chuckle. "A minor complication, your highness."

"Tell me, who are you? You don't strike me as a Saiyan, and I feel I should know who is taking me prisoner."

"I'm like you, a mask of royalty."

The old man snapped his fingers and disappeared, and the ship doors were closed, leaving Frost alone.

* * *

The first thing Cabba did was throw an energy bomb into the ground to make smoke. He knew that no matter how powerful she became by consuming that infernal fruit, she was blind due to the influence of the Tree of Might. He flew away like a mouse running away from a tigress through the halfway.

"Blast it! I'm really a loser!" Cabba thought to himself while clenching his teeth. His heart was beating like crazy and felt like his hair was turning white, and couldn't think straight. "I'm just a play-thing for this psychopath!"

Then, light shined behind him. He saw the immense beam with the strength to destroy an entire planet sector ready to obliterate him and couldn't fly anywhere, he was going to die.

"Blast it, blast it, blast it!"

While feeling the heat on his feet, he saw his miracle: the hole in the floor he came from, and jumped down. He saw the huge beam destroy the entire upper hallway. While brief, he took a second to take a huge breath. His feet had severe burns.

She did this entire terror attack to revive his brother? He thought to himself while flying, avoiding touching the ground. "What nonsense! I... I need to kill her! Is like she said, in order to fully prove my worth I have to kill her!"

Cabba wasn't doubting, he wanted to put her to justice, and no matter what sad story she had, he was never going to forgive her for endangering his planet and his family. "But how am I supposed to do that? I'm just a loser used by her, and she already defeated me alongside Kora. No matter how many times I get healed, I will never be able to hold a candle to her strength."

He wanted to scream in anger, but had to run away. He was small with nothing remarkable about him; she was big with that witch's powers, and nothing would change that.

He then remembered: the fruit. He had two with him. She used him for his "pure heart." Heck, he is only alive because of that fairy tale nonsense, but he had the fruit on him. Can he use her power against her? The delicious looking spiky fruit, maybe he could...

Noises.

Smelling like fire, an orange energy ring came in his direction. He put his back to the wall, and never realized how it felt: he could feel someone.

No matter.

The energy ring was Taura's signature technique, named the Killer Drive, and it was able to sense life in order to kill a person from a distance. Cabba heard she created the technique during the wars to find members of the Space Pirates trying to ambush her squad. It was flying right in front of him, like a guillotine ready to cut his head off.

There was a way to counter it, however. He took a long breath and tried to remain calm, lowering his energy. The Killer Drive could only sense someone's heat, so if he remains similar to a state of sleep he could be free.

It didn't work, the thing was getting closer.

Blast!

Cabba threw one of the fruits across the hallway in a desperate attempt.

It worked, as the Killer Drive went towards it, and exploded destroying the fruit alongside it.

"Such a relief..." Cabba opened his mouth and took a long breath. "I hate this place, I want to get out of it already..."

He needed to return with Frost. He was sure he would have been able to get out of that place, therewase nothing impossible for him.

Then, another earthquake happened.

"Blast it, the whole planet is going to be destroyed with so many earthquakes!" Cabba screamed. He was so angry he didn't care anymore. He knew she was close but none of that mattered. If she was going to kill him, what was delaying the inevitable?

He stood up and flew again at high speed, and saw the light: a hole towards freedom.

"This is it! This is where Frost went!"

He took a long breath, the air was sort of polluted, but he didn't care. He missed the sun bathed in its light while running away.

However, Taura grabbed him by the head in that exact moment, crushing him. Cabba couldn't do anything but scream in pain.

"Rule of survival, soldier: never let the enemy know where you are."

Many of the countless vine monsters were heading in their direction.


	17. War Agony

**This chapter took me a good while to write, even leaving me with a headache.**

 **Enjoy.**

* * *

 **War Agony**

 **XVII**

They kept flying away while the monsters were following them, with the sun on their faces. Caulifla hated running, but what she did was a stupid decision in fighting them, and had to swallow her pride. The green man that helped her was flying in front of her, guiding her to the spaceship. It was funny, but despite hanging with the man for a good while, and was close to going with him to another planet, she didn't know his name.

"Hey!"

"What do you want now? We have to escape!"

"I know, I know, but, we don't know each other's names!"

"Why is that important right now?!"

The two flew down, evading the monsters jumping at high speed. One of them was close to touching her hair.

"I just want to call you by something, ok?! I'm Caulifla!"

"I'm..."

He suddenly stopped, making Caulifla collide with his back. She was going to yell at him, but she noticed something in the air changed. There weren't any noises coming from behind, she turned her head and noticed how the Namekian and the monsters were distracted, looking at the horizon.

"What's wrong?"

"What is this… what is this demonic ki?"

"Demo what?"

"Something is coming, intense and vile … but, is different from all these monsters. A sick energy, rotten to the core like putrid flesh, and angrier than a raging bull!"

Caulifla was confused, as the green man was too scared to move. She punched him in the back in order to wake him up, and the trick seemed to have worked.

"What are you even saying right now?"

The Namekian turned his head towards her, and the eyes shown through the metal mask were shaking in fear.

"We have to run, now!"

"We were doing that just now, you idi..."

Another earthquake was being felt on the planet. Caulifla wasn't in the ground but she could still see how the earth was crumbling, and in the horizon, there was something destroying the ground as it flew over them. No, not something, someone, with an intense scarlet aura, but what looked like black flames over it.

She couldn't sense energy, but she knew that person's aura wasn't natural.

 **"Luuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuusk!"**

An intense scream was shouted by that person, enough to make the planet tremble once again. Caulifla tried to defend herself from the intensity, but then the monsters followed in the chorus of screams.

Distorted and in agony, were the words Caulifla could think of a way to describe such horrendous sound. She covered her ears, but with her eyes noticed how the Namekian fell to the ground.

Quickly, she flew down to help him stand. He was agonizing on the floor, trying to rip his ears off due to the screech made by the countless creatures, but the mask didn't allow him that.

"Stop it you monsters, you're hurting him!"

The ground calmed itself the moment the man arrived, with a strong stomp making a hole in the ground. Caulifla took a look at him while holding the Namekian. He was a pale man of an average body size, wearing a pink uniform, with his naked arms showing unnatural looking veins. He was looking down on them with intense red eyes, and his hair, while flowing with the wind, was similar to a hedgehog in shape.

He was walking towards them, constantly sniffing his nose, with deep steps enough to break the ground they were on.

Some of the monsters jumped at him, but didn't try to eat him. Instead, they were bowing to him, like if he was some kind of king. She couldn't tell what the man smelled like, as the horrendous odor of sweat and wet plants from the monsters were at them.

"This smell..." the man said, with his nose constantly sniffing. "Is you, Lusk."

 _Lusk?_ _This guy is Lusk? No, it can't be. Lusk is a murderer and heinous space pirate, no one like him would ever come back to save me, a Saiyan, from these monsters._

"What is this?"

The man stopped walking just in front of her, and kept sniffing while confused. His voice was surprisingly soft. Despite his eyes being open, Caulifla noticed how they weren't focused. The countless creatures beside him put her more nervous than ever.

The man was furious and shaking his teeth, like he wanted to scream again.

He didn't, but the monsters screeched in his place, and the Namekian screamed in pain, trying to rip off the mask of his face so in turn, he could rip off his ears.

"Stop it!" she yelled while covering her ears.

The monsters ceased. The man put his face in front of her real close, while sniffing at her like some sort of dog. His mouth was open too like if he had trouble breathing, to expand on the comparison.

"Another powder goblin?"

Caulifla stood up, with her fist raised.

"A what? Look, I don't know who or what you are, but you better leave this guy alone. Why don't you mess with someone of your own kind, pinky?!"

The man raised his hand and smacked her to the ground. The hit was fast, but effective. The pain in her back was intense as she tried to stand up. The monsters were looking at her, surrounding her, prepared to eat her flesh.

Yet they didn't move. Caulifla noticed how they surrounded them all in a circle, looking at that man with intense curiosity. The man took the Namekian by the neck, while he was still screaming, and kept repeatedly punching him in the face like a savage.

"You..." he screamed, while his aura was intensifying, "...you murderer! Do you even know how many lives you ruined? Lives, families, everything!"

He started to press the neck harder, and with his hands took the mask off the Namekian. Under the mask, there was a darkly green muscular face with a huge jaw and no visible defects like scars or wrinkles, angrily looking at the monsters holding him.

"A mask will not fool me! You will **feel** the decades of suffering right here and now, Lusk!"

"I- I'm telling..."

"He is not Lusk!" Caulifla yelled. She stood up and tried to punch him, but the monsters quickly stood in her way, getting punched instead. "He saved me from… whatever the hell you guys are, stop thinking he is that pirate!"

The man didn't take his hand off the Namekian, but he looked at Caulifla with his intense sight. He kept sniffing. Naturally, any normal person no matter the race would be deadly terrified, but Caulifla wasn't any normal person.

She was the prodigy of Sadala.

"Why do you you smell familiar?"

* * *

"Gaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!"

The boy was screaming while she was crushing his head. As Taura expected, he didn't bring an interesting fight for long, but didn't think it would be over so quickly. Such a disappointment in the new generation.

She got closer to Cabba's ear without stopping to crush the head.

"Let me give you this lesson, as my first, last and only one to you before you die: anger is everyone's downfall."

Cabba kept screaming.

"The key to success is to know what ticks your enemy off. Frustration, loved ones, fighting is nothing but a game of patience, and what better way to win but to anger your enemy? Got that?"

The boy ceased to scream, to take a huge breath despite the pain.

"Let me rephrase myself, you will die as a true warrior now."

The moment she was about to finish him, the ground started to shake. She didn't command anything to happen, so she was taken by the surprise. She then saw how the entire field was being destroyed in the horizon, with an intense and sinister aura coming from whatever was destroying it.

She turned her head, and saw the spaceship in the distance. Evaprimolca was running towards the source of the energy, and the vine monsters that were running towards Taura started to follow him instead.

 _What is going on?_

The sinister aura hit her like a strong breeze on her eyes, blinding her for a few seconds, but it was enough time. She was punched in the stomach with an elbow, softening her fingers and letting Cabba be free. He shot an energy blast to her face, and while it wasn't enough to fatally wound her, it was to keep her blind. The moment the smoke disappeared, he was gone.

 _Guess we'll wait a few more minutes, cornered mouse._

A familiar aura was felt, and the sound of a door opening happened in front of her. Camelo appeared using her true form and a worried look on her face.

"Beloved! We have a problem!"

"What kind of problem?"

"Your brother went mad the moment he felt a Namekian, he is after him."

Taura was left speechless, while staying calm.

"A Namekian? Impossible, all prisoners were meant to be absorbed by the Tree of Might, what is a despicable green man doing around? But most importantly, that aura is Esparra's? but, you told me that while he may awake with a different one due to the revival, this is beyond what I ever thought. It shouldn't be this savage!."

"Is also beyond what I expected. Is not the aura of a Saiyan, but of a beast. Please, don't run yet, let me think."

Camelo stood quiet, with her hand touching on her horn. Taura was close to rushing toward her brother. She then snapped her fingers.

"I have an idea, but, can you tell me how Esparra was incinerated?"

* * *

The Phototauros was a legendary monster that terrorized the south galaxy for many years, with a size that could engulf an entire planet with its vines alone. For a long time, bounty hunters everywhere were tasked with the job of eliminating it.

But the biggest surprise was that despite being a monster of epic proportions, its skeleton was quite small. Its skull was no bigger than a soccer ball, and whoever defeated it could claim it as a prize for its people.

The siblings made a competition on who could defeat the beast first, and Esparra won the game.

Esparra defeated the beast a long time ago on planet Ikonda, and claimed the skull for himself, wearing it on his waist. During every mission, every space pirate would flee in fear of the Saiyan of the pink armor and the bull skull.

Taura defeated its breed, equally as dangerous, but didn't fancy herself with such style. It was too loud. She, however, took her name from the beast, as she hated her Saiyan name, Chuga.

However, when Esparra was found dead in that nameless planet a decade ago, he was wearing his prized possession. They asked Taura if she wanted it, but told the men of the funerary to left him keep it.

"He fought really hard to defeat such beast. To take it away from him, even in death, would be like taking away a lung!"

Esparra was incinerated alongside the skull of the beast, and Taura turned the ashes of her brother into a diamond she kept with her all the time.

* * *

"He was incinerated with the ashes of the beast too?"

Camelo started to eat her long black fingernails while looking at her. She didn't open her eyes, but Taura could sense the fear in her.

"Why didn't you tell me? This could be a great danger to your plans!"

"Why? What did I do wrong?"

"Everything! Not only did I revive your brother, but the Phototauros too! They fused on a cellular level! It will ruin everything!"

And any sense of victory in her started to crumble. Taura didn't lose time and went after her brother, while Camelo snapped her fingers and disappeared.

* * *

Caulifla stood up to him while she was surrounded by the creatures. She didn't know what to do, so she did the only thing she could think off right now.

Bluff.

"Hey, candy ass! Why don't you come here and face a fellow Saiyan? Are you a coward?"

The man kept strangling the neck of the Namekian while smelling her from the distance.

"A Saiyan? Nonsense, why would a Saiyan work with a Space Pirate?"

"I told you, he is not such thing!"

His sinister aura intensified, and the monsters screeched.

 **"LIIIIIEEEESSS!"**

The man's aura grew so intense, it felt like it was its own living entity.

In fact, Caulifla had trouble breathing at that moment. That man's aura was so powerful she felt like she was being strangled by a pair of hands. She tried to run away, but the monsters were too close to her.

"Crusher Cannon!"

She shot a scarlet ball of energy to the man, but it did nothing as it was consumed by the aura. He was too powerful.

"Crap!"

It stopped. The aura ceased to strangle her, and she took a deep breath while on the ground. The man even stopped holding the Namekian and threw him on the floor violently. He was having trouble breathing, sweating a lot and holding his chest with his hand.

"W-water…water!"

 _PRAM!_

Something jumped between them and landed on the ground. A gray four-legged creature, it didn't take long to figure out it was a robot tiger.

Caulifla was confused.

"W-what the?"

The tiger started to speak with a very monotone voice to the man.

"Please, calm down and return with us. This man is not Lusk, is simply another Namekian."

The man sniffed at it.

"Eva?"

"Yes, it is I. Please calm yourself."

The man was in pain, coughing a lot. He was bleeding from his mouth even, despite nobody touching his skin.

"No… he is from a race of murderers… I must…"

"Please, listen to my voice. He is not our enemy."

The man's aura decreased. Caulifla noticed how he didn't have any killing intent on him anymore. Instead, he looked like a sick and sad man while trying to touch the tiger's head, although failing a few times due to his blindness. He was almost sobbing.

"My head… my chest… it hurts..."

"We can help you. Come."

The Namekian, however, had different plans.

He started screaming, and slowly his body mass increased. He stood up on the ground, growing in size by every minute. In a short moment, the Namekian was as tall as a building. The man raised his head up and looked above, at the green titan.

"This smell… the smell of a giant!" He said, trembling.

Very quickly, the Namekian stretched his arm and grabbed Caulifla. She was surprised, but she welcome him this time with a big smile on her face.

"Why didn't you do this before?!"

The Namekian grinned at her, but was shaken. He was shot from everywhere by the vine creatures in the ground who spit powerful blasts from their mouths. Very quickly, he kicked a large portion of them like a kid kicking at an anthill, and the monsters were thrown into the skies.

"That damn mask didn't allow me to. Let's escape while we can, Caulifla."

The Namekian tried to run away, but was stopped. Not only the countless monsters grabbed his legs, but the strange Saiyan's energy was going crazy at his sight, making the heat affect the air. Caulifla wondered why he didn't simply kick him.

The Saiyan was getting angrier by the second looking at them.

"What are you waiting for? Run!" Caulifla yelled.

"I'm trying! Damn gnats! They are biting my legs!"

Caulifla set herself free from the giant's hand and started to shoot at the monsters like crazy, trying to free the Namekian while avoiding the sinister aura's heat. She fell at high speed and even kicked a monster's head while at it.

The effort worked, as there were fewer monsters on the legs allowing him to move and run. Once she finished, she flew to his shoulder.

"Wahoo! Let's go!"

The Namekian wasn't as excited, but every step he did made the ground tremble.

"Say," Caulifla said while holding tight, "wouldn't be cool if you grab that tree and crush it on all those monsters?"

"Even with this size, I doubt I would be able to grab it, much less with those things in my feet!"

He wasn't lying, as the multitude of vine monsters were following the green titan, with some jumping like crickets trying to bite his neck. Caulifla shoot her _Crusher Cannons_ at them, but they were persistent and annoying.

"Hey, I think they are only focusing on you!"

"What makes you think that, brat?"

"They don't look at me, only on you!" Caulifla yelled while shooting at the jumping monsters. "They follow that guy's hatred on you, like if he was commanding them!"

* * *

When she arrived, Evaprimolca was trying to calm Esparra, who was looking fiercely at the giant Namekian running away. Many of the vine creatures went to follow the green pest, while others stood with his brother, watching him like wolves taking care of one of their own.

Esparra looked horripilant. He was holding his chest with an arm of absurd proportions, increasing in size by the minute due to the monster's influence, taking deep breaths. The stench of the place was disgusting, smelling like vomit.

 _The monsters obey and protect him. Is this because of the Phototaurous's influence on them? But if so, why?_

Camelo appeared right beside her.

"This isn't good. Speak to him, the bastard is suffering a heart attack!"

Ignoring the stench of the body, Taura hugged him without much of a thought, making sure his head was put in her chest so he could hear her heartbeats. It appeared to have worked in calming him down. He had an intense fever.

"Please, calm yourself. I'm here."

His voice was distorted.

"Sis… It hurts."

"I know. We will save you, don't worry."

The Phototauros was a giant beast that increased its size, to the point it could absorb an entire planet in its vines and let it dry. Why exactly, nobody knew. Esparra was in pain because his body kept increasing in size, he was now taller than her with his trembling legs.

Completely unnatural, just like reviving the dead.

Camelo was looking at them while still eating her fingernails trying to think of something.

"What should I do?" Camelo asked.

"Sis… I'm scared…"

She couldn't think of a plan. How could she come out of this? By every second, his breathing decreased while his body was increasing in size. Think Taura, think.

"What should I do? Hurry!"

Then, it struck like a flash.

* * *

The Phototauros appeared to have no weaknesses whatsoever. The moment it attacked a planet, you could count on it being a goner, with the only hope that the Galactic Patrol could save its inhabitants in time.

When she was a child, she remembered how there were refugees of the planets destroyed by the monster in her hometown. Homes, families, memories, all lost.

To think the Space Pirates would ever dare to strike people that lost their home. She related more than ever after surviving the attack and being saved by Frost, who helped them to gain the strength to strike back not only at Lusk, but at those monsters that started the war agony, human or beast.

When they were old enough, they went to fight against the monster, but no matter what they did, it didn't appear to have any weakness whatsoever.

Esparra, however, noticed it did have one.

"Is a plant! The monster is just an oversized plant! The moment sunlight doesn't reach it, it will weaken itself!"

She didn't know what to make out of it. Esparra was a weird guy, a sort of womanizer that enjoyed feminine crap, not for anything he wore that pink armor. But he was her brother, and knew a thing or two about plants.

With help from the Galactic Patrol, she moved many ships to block the sunlight to Planet Ikonda. The monster was increasing in size, while Esparra was on the planet alongside Evaprimolca to hold it down.

It worked!

With the combined effort of both the Lad Sarced Champion and the Ikonda king, the beast was slain. The Saiyan took the head of the beast as the prize, ending the reign of the monster, leaving only the breed to take care of.

She punched him in the shoulder with a big smile on her face when they saw each other again.

"You freaking genius! How did you know the weakness?"

"I knew a bit of gardening, I didn't think it would work! But, well, is like you always tell me sis, we are the generation born to make history."

* * *

The sunset of dawn. The skies were orange, with the sun still letting its light shine upon the world filled with the body of the Tree of Might.

What a fool she was!

"Camelo, do whatever you must to turn the sun off!"

She stopped eating her fingernails, and instead just opened her mouth in confusion.

"You want me to destroy a star?"

"Destroy it, make the space ships block the light, turn everything into a honey river, I don't know! Do it now!"

"I can't!"

"What do you mean you can't?!"

"I can't control the gravity to move the ships this far, and destroying the star would only cause a supernova to destroy the entire galaxy, beloved!"

"No."

"We have to kill him before it's too late."

"No!"

The fever ceased. Violently, Esparra stood up, and took some steps towards the direction of the sun. Taura yelled at the monsters who were screeching in a chorus, but they didn't listen.

Evaprimolca ran in front of the man, who didn't stop looking at the sun.

"Please friend, let us help you."

He raised his hand towards the light.

"What… what beautiful sunlight..."

"What?" Taura asked.

He then lowered both his arms, and simply bowed his head at the mechanical tiger. Evaprimolca took a step backward. Despite not being able to show emotion, he looked afraid.

In the split of a second, Esparra kicked him in the neck. It was so sudden Taura didn't even see him move. Evaprimolca's mirror force was activated, and Esparra's neck was bashed in, leaving a huge wound on his body.

The size of the wound would be enough to kill anyone, no matter the race or the power level. Yet, Esparra was still standing, even moving towards the light with small steps. Taura stood up and flew towards him, but what she saw left her horrified: a completely blank expression. There was no life on the eyes, not even pupils. Just a white void.

Then, he screamed.

Without even seeing him move, he punched her in the stomach. There wasn't any expression in his face, he was simply gone. But not his energy, his ki was rising to absurd levels, and the veins in his body were shining like neon lights while the flesh was decomposing on the spot.

"Beloved!"

The sound of a door opening happened, and Camelo disappeared alongside Esparra.

"Camelo!"

Evaprimolca tried to stood up, but his neck was broken. All he could do was to look directly at Taura, and talk.

"Where are them?"

"I… I don't know." She replied.

Something in the air changed. The monsters, one by one, started to scream in a chorus once again but their sounds were different. The previous screams were of fierce anger or similar to a triumphant screech, but this scream was of direct pain.

The Tree of Might looked different. The tree, vibrant in its texture on the wasteland was now looking in scarlet tints. It was bleeding from the inside, shining.

Many of the monsters were running away from it while screaming.

 _Camelo, you fool._

Taura, recovering from the hit in the stomach, hurried and grabbed Evaprimolca with her arms. He was heavy, even with all the power she obtained from the fruits, so she carried him on her back, flying on the distance.

PREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEUUUUUUUUUUU!

An explosion, a giant barrage of light happened in what used to be the capital, and countless pieces of the Tree of Might were thrown everywhere, and many of the monsters were caught in the destructive wave.

* * *

It took her a full minute to stand up, as Evaprimolca hurt her back. She was impressed his mechanical body didn't break her spine, it was possibly an effect of the fruit.

What she saw was discouraging: a complete utter wasteland. There was nothing of the Tree of Might left except rest of vines on the ground, drying themselves up without the body. The vine monsters were around her, on the ground without moving, possibly dead without the source.

She closed her first. Her chest and eyes hurted. She was unbelievably angry, clenching her teeth looking at the wasteland.

Everything she did became null at the end. There was no conversion, there was no future for her plans to turn everything into one single entity, free of the countless wars with the Space Pirates. Nothing.

"No… this can't be the end. She… and him… they couldn't have left me alone. I can't be alone again. This… this can't be my fault!"

Evaprimolca interrupted her loud thoughts, as he was looking behind her.

"Taura… behind you…"

She looked behind her. It was a shirtless young boy, wearing a torn uniform of the forces, holding a spiky fruit on his hand, with his eyes filled with resolve.

"Looking for this?" Cabba said.

She couldn't contain her anger.

* * *

 **Author's Note: This was possibly the hardest chapter for me to write. Luckily, one more chapter with the villain of the story, and then the conclusion. I thank everyone who stood up reading this silly story. This is an adaptation of two plot points from the Tree of Might movie: Gohan turning into a Great Ape, and Goku using the energy of the Tree of Might to kill Turles himself. I always disliked Gohan's portion in the film for the fact that, despite building him up, he ends in an anticlimax leaving Goku to fix the mess.**


	18. The Blue Pawn and the Gray Queen

**No commentaries today.**

* * *

 **The Blue Pawn and the Gray Queen**

 **XVIII**

He was nothing but a nobody. A nobody Camelo needed for her wish to see her brother again, but a nobody none the less. Yet there he was, looking down on her while holding the fruit of the Tree of Godly Might. He held it in his hand in front of him, like if he was hanging it to her in a mocking fashion.

It was ridiculous. He was a kid, a scrawny kid that was barely alive, he possibly didn't even had pubic hair!

She took a step towards him to grab the fruit and…

"Did I say you could move?!"

He screamed with enough anger to make her take notice. He pressed the fruit as if he was trying to crush it. She couldn't allow that. She tried to calm herself down, it was not the time for anger, this was just a case close to a hostage situation. It wouldn't be the first time she would have to deal with a gremlin.

"Heh heh heh, Cabba boy. I thought you died in the explosion and here you are." She relaxed her body, to calm Cabba down. "You know, I need that thing of mine to start over, so please hand it to me, and I'll allow you to eat one when the new tree emerges."

"You don't get it, don't you?" He said with a really cold voice. "This is a trial, is over for you."

"Is not! The war with the Space Pirates will be over once my army, free of the boundaries and limitations to our race, rises again! I may have become the strongest Saiyan but I need more! You can't start a revolution with brute force alone, you need relationships too! I will achieve universal peace myself!"

"Is that why you need to capture Frost, Taura?"

Cabba didn't change his expression at all during her monologue. His eyes were darker than the blackest void, cold, null of emotions. She knew that expression: it was tranquil fury. In any other circumstance, Taura would be worried.

But she wasn't. She needed that fruit now. She tried to take a step, but Cabba pressed the fruit harder, she had to take it back. _The damn brat_. He knows that the moment he sees her make a movement, the fruit will be destroyed. She had to play his game.

"Yes, I needed… need Frost. I may look like a cold murderer now, but I owe much to him. Tell me Cabba boy, do you know he saved me as a child from Lusk?"

"You are a murderer."

"It was thirty years ago on Planet Nectar. Lusk attacked my home planet while turning into a giant." she smiled, as she thought of something. She raised her hand to the horizon. "Just like that Namekian that ran away from… you know."

Cabba didn't stop looking at her. His eyes kept looking at her with the same fury, but too raised his hand towards the same direction, but closer: to one of the dead Vine Creatures on the floor.

"You killed your own family and turned them… into that!"

"You can't start a revolution with only brute force, but there is no such thing as one without casualties!" She yelled with pain in her throat. "I assure you, this was a necessary trial for me, but thanks to the tree they could live forever. Strong, immortal, my family will live on as that… perhaps yours too."

Cabba pressed the fruit harder than ever. He was close to crushing it, with even juices coming out of it. She had to raise her hands to calm him down from the distance. He didn't change the expression, but was angrier than ever.

Cabba spoke again. There wasn't anger in his voice, just cold tranquility that was creepy. He sounded like a puppet, not like himself.

"You convinced me Taura. I will give you this fruit, but only if you answer me a couple of questions."

She was confused. She took a look at Evaprimolca beside her. The mechanical tiger's neck was broken, and he couldn't rise up from the ground. His inexpressive face didn't help either, and she couldn't read him. What should she do?

Kill the kid in the instant? No. She could risk the fruit getting destroyed. The space ships with the population of Sadala and the Galactic Patrol were still atop them, she could use them as a bargaining deal to make him give up.

No. They could see her attack and fly away. Her attacks were not that fast, despite everything. It would be useless.

She tried summoning a portal as she did inside the tree, but nothing came from it. The moment the tree was destroyed, so were her extra powers.

 _Crap._

She looked at Cabba again and nodded.

"Your name is Chuga, right?"

Her eyes wide opened. She had to stay calm.

"Yes. I named myself after the Phototauros because I hate my Saiyan name. "She said bluntly and without much emotion in her voice."It sounds like sugar.

"I studied your background back when I was a kid. Is true that you and your brother were survivors of a terrorist attack by the Space Pirates. Do you think your past justify your actions?"

"Of course. If it wasn't for Frost, that disgusting green man would have continued his heinous attacks! I'm trying to save everyone from such cruelty happening ever again!"

"Do you realize you made me a survivor by doing a terrorist attack yourself?"

Her fists clenched. That commentary made her angry. How dare this brat compare that random act of cruelness… with her necessary act of evil?!

"That witch needed a pure heart to revive your brother, right? You used me."

"Don't bring them into this, you brat!"

"And the final question. If your actions are so noble Taura, why didn't she choose your heart?"

What was that brat implying?

"Quiet, you bafoon!"

Cabba's expression changed at last. He was crying, peacefully.

"Why are you crying now? Did fear made you go insane?"

"No. I'm crying for you."

That did it. She didn't care anymore, she jumped at him to personally _strangle him_. The boy tossed the fruit at the air, and she couldn't risk losing it!

 _No!_

And in a flash, she was shot in the chest by a powerful purple blast. She was confused, not knowing what happened, as she was having trouble breathing. There was a hole in where her heart should be, with blood coming out of it.

Cabba spoke again.

"You loved to hear yourself talk, so I put everything I had into this one Garlic Buster while you were monologuing."

She wanted to scream. She still had enough strength to stand up, and she punched the brat in the face sending him flying, but grabbed him by the leg to throw him violently into the ground. She put herself atop him, punching him repeatedly in the face with one hand while strangling his neck with the other.

Punch, punch, punch!

Cabba's face was full of bruises, bleeding heavily. She made sure to make him lose a teeth or two.

Punch, punch, punch!

However, her punches were getting weaker and slower.

She couldn't punch him anymore, she was out of oxygen. Cabba couldn't get up, as he was below her, but he had the indecency to look at her and speak.

"I... wish for universal peace too. I don't want people like my father or you to suffer anymore because of the war, is why I admire Frost. Your mistake was my miracle... **I hate you** … but maybe you could be healed with the last fruit. If you eat it, you could still save yourself."

And he handed it off to her. He still had it on his hand somehow.

She… she could…

 _No._

She grabbed it and destroyed it herself. Feeling insulted, and with the last of her strength, she spit on Cabba's face.

"You...are...nothing..."

And then there was silence.

* * *

With difficulty, Cabba freed himself from her. He was exhausted, and had trouble seeing due to the constant punches in the head. The sunlight of the afternoon was beautiful, despite the horrific wasteland he was in, with the corpses of the creatures around the floor. He took a look at Taura, and he didn't know how to feel.

The wind was howling. He was barely clothed, it was cold.

Is as doctor Yarrow said, _Saiyans may be able to destroy a planet, but they are still biological creatures._ They still need to breathe. He saw how Kora charged her attack in order to strike the witch. Although pointless, it gave him the idea in order to avenge the comrade that tried to save him from Taura. They barely knew each other, but he made sure to respect her last wish to defeat the deluded revolutionary.

 _You are nothing._

He was just lucky. The terrorists sans the tiger that can't even stand were all dead, but the wasteland was somber and solitary beside the corpses alongside whatever vine was left of the giant tree. He still wondered how he did it, he is sure he wasn't that strong during the games. Could have he grown in such a short time? He didn't feel different.

 _You are nothing._

Part of him felt victorious. He defeated the terrorist that killed countless in one single day and destroyed the Coliseum, the capital greatest monument where many Saiyans of the past left their mark in history. And unlike their first confrontation just an hour ago, he didn't miss at point blank.

But another part felt empty. He killed a former hero, one he knew since he was a child. He didn't know if what he did was the right thing. He should have left the Galactic Patrol to arrest her, all he did was to take the opportunity to kill someone he hated. Is amazing he ever felt hatred over someone from his own race.

 _You are nothing_.

He always thought that, if there was ever gonna be blood on his hands, it would be of a Space Pirate that did harm to the innocents. But was she any different from them? Do the Space Pirates ever believe they are doing the right thing? His mother always wrote they were just thieves and murderers, with some being clinically insane.

Cabba was just confused, with his head hurting. He sat on a rock, trying to organize his thoughts. Taura's corpse was there right in front of him, like a statue with the sunlight bathing her.

"What am I even gonna do now? I wonder if my parents are above or were they transformed too. Did Magetta survived the explosion?"

 _You are nothing._

He simply stood quiet. He thought it was all over, now all he had to do was wait until the Galactic Patrol or anyone else landed and rescue him.

He was wrong.

There was something coming out of Taura's shadow, a weird substance – neither liquid nor gaseous – was emerging from it. He prepared himself, until the substance took the form of a woman with a delicate horn in her forehead. She was no longer wearing the green uniform from the forces, but instead a dress of emerald color that showed a lot of skin.

It was the witch.

Cabba's heart skyrocketed, and he felt he couldn't breathe or move, putting his hands on his chest again, feeling a pain that was never there.

She merely looked at Taura, and she had what appeared to be a sense of pity in her fox-like face, as she didn't open her eyes. She caressed her spiky hedgehog hair and got close to her forehead, trying to kiss it gently.

"Poor thing."

She then took a look at the terrified Cabba, with a delightfully evil smirk on her face.

"Sugar lump," she said with a flirtatious tone. He wanted to run away, but his legs couldn't move. "Oh, my beloved passed away. What a shame. I was hoping we could absorb more planets, but we didn't even finish this one."

"Get away from me! Get away!"

She started to laugh rather quietly.

"You know, I never properly introduced myself." She then sat in the air with a leg crossed, looking at the sun. "Ask away, sugar lump." Cabba was too scared to say anything. Looking at that woman just made him feel like if he was stabbed by thousands of knives in his chest.

"Too shy?" She said without taking her sight at the sun, speaking like a movie actress being interviewed for her next blockbuster. "Alright, I'll ask myself. Hello, you beautiful mischiever, who you may be?"

She then looked at the other side. "Why, I'm thankful you ask! My name is Camelo, and I was expelled from my home. Those runts of royalty didn't believe I should be the queen of my kingdom!"

She then looked at the sun.

"Why how interesting darling! Tell me more about your kingdom!"

She then looked at the other side.

"Oh, is the darkest place in the universe. Only the most wicked souls exist there. Is called the Makai, or as the mortals would like to call it: The Demon Realm. I was expelled years ago, I long forgot when!"

She then looked at the sun.

"You must miss your home!"

She then looked at the other side.

"Why yes, I do. Home is the most precious of words. But even the most powerful of wizards have trouble entering into the realm. You need a lot of _Kili_ to enter there. Is when I came with a plan: to modify the fruits from the Heavenly Realm, and absorb the energy from many planets into myself so I can return home. Although it took me years to properly do it."

She then looked at the sun.

"But does this mean all of this mayhem was your fault?"

She then looked at Cabba, and landed on the ground.

"No. I only needed the energy, but I never planted the tree or killed anyone myself. This was my beloved's plan, I only gave her the means to do it."

Nobody landed a hit on him, yet Cabba was out of breath. That woman terrified him. He wanted to scream for help, but he was all alone there.

She was amused by his expression.

"We spend some beautiful years together. She always felt weak, even envying the abilities of other races like the Namekians to regenerate, so I promised her I would give her all of it. I think I fell for her, is a shame I can't bring her with me now."

She then looked sad, even making mopey expressions. She looked like a clown, as there was nothing sincere about her act.

"By the way, sugar lump, I want to tell you another thing. I apologize."

"W-what?"

"I apologize for inserting so many cliches during my act inside the tree! All those cliches of "love of the gods" and "new path" blah blah blah! I only played that role so my beloved was satisfied thinking what she did was a good thing. I don't believe any of that silly stuff. I just wanted a way back home, so I played the role of the insane preacher. I'm an excellent actress, don't you think?"

"W-why are you..."

"Telling you all of this? I dunno, I love stories -I had nothing better to do while plotting my return to my kingdom-, but I hate when details aren't expelled in the last act. Too much ambiguity ruins a good story, and letting readers figure out stuff is an insult in my opinion, as they put ridiculous theories. I think you should be aware of some details, after all, we used you."

"G-get away from me! Get away!"

She got closer to him, and stabbed him in the chest with her arm. Cabba screamed with all the strength in his lungs.

Yet, he felt nothing. He wasn't hurt. She then extracted her arm, like if she was a hologram, as there was no damage in his body. She giggled and then spoke with a soft tone, almost like singing a lullaby.

"When her brother died, he unleashed enough energy to open a portal to my realm. What you're speaking with is but an illusion, cutie. I already left this place."

His teeth were shaking. That woman still terrified him enough to not move from there. She smiled, letting see her fangs and opened her eyes. They were completely gray, with a small red tint on them. She was licking her long black fingers like someone that just ate something delicious.

"Not many are pure of heart. The need for money and the many years at fighting can cause one to become impure like a fruit getting rotten. Is better to taste a heart so pure when they are young, otherwise the effect wouldn't be the same. Thanks to you, I may finally return home."

She then started to vanish.

A beam of red energy passed through her, but it was too late as she was gone.

Frost appeared right in front him, flying to his position.

"Are you okay, young Cabba?"

Seeing his hero did nothing. He was petrified.

* * *

Frost gave a signal to one of the space ships above them to descend, and the Galactic Patrol and the Saiyan army landed on the place. Many of the patrollers checked the area and put a checkpoint with the medical staff for both Frost and Cabba injuries.

Frost was barely hurt besides the damage done to his eye, but according to the medics of the place, it was nothing serious and would be as good as new. Cabba injuries were treatable, although recovering his teeth would be a problem. When the patrollers asked him what happened, he was too terrified to properly tell them.

About Taura's insane plan, the witch inside the tree that stabbed him to steal his blood, the survivors of the Coliseum games being killed off with only him surviving, Magetta saving him and disappearing by Taura weird powers, the tree getting destroyed, and the former ruler of planet Ikonda helping the terrorists. He heard the patrollers speaking about the latter, as he was thrown in the ground completely deactivated, like a toy that ran out of batteries.

"It appears to be on standby mode," Frost said, he turned back into his first form after the conflict was over. "Damn bastard, he did it so he wouldn't be interrogated!"

Cabba didn't reply to him. As good as being with him was like, he was still terrified, like if the witch could come of anywhere to stab him again. The countless vine creatures were still on the ground, with the patrollers being terrified of getting close, only the Saiyans having the right attitude of getting closer.

They were formerly Saiyans, turned now into those creatures. Not only that, but the countless races that sought protection and made Sadala a second home likewise were turned into that. How should he be feeling?

"Hey, cheer up. You did the universe a great service." Frost said while offering him a hot drink. "I understand you may be troubled, but we need you to tell them what you saw."

Cabba didn't say anything despite accepting the drink. He was too busy with his thoughts.

"You know, her attack was devastating to the planet according to the reports. The ground was affected, the trees lost part of their strength, the rivers and oceans water got contaminated. Even the oxygen isn't as pure. That attack was horrendous, and affected the planet infrastructure. But don't worry! I'll gather the best scientists so I can find to find a solution to this."

Cabba didn't reply. Frost, annoyed that he couldn't motivate him, simply stood still looking at everyone working. There was no sign of his parents among the civilians from the ship. Were they really dead?

If he didn't shed enough tears for one day, he would be crying again. His face hurt just thinking about it.

Suddenly, two patrollers arrived carrying one of the vine monsters with difficulty, and Cabba reacted by screaming.

"Hey hey hey! Don't worry kid, this thing is as good as dead!" Said one of the patrollers, a tall and muscular guy with the head of a dolphin.

"Hey hey hey! We are just checking this thing out, no worries! We want to see how this thing works!" said the second, a scrawny guy with the head of a shark.

The two put the dead creature above a metallic bed right in front of them. Cabba was nervous while Frost put himself between the two in case anything happened. One of them used a scalpel to cut the creature up weird stomach up, to see its insides. Cabba noticed how the stomach was similar to the cursed spiky fruit, which made his stomach feel disgusted. They penetrated the stomach, and when the cut was deep enough, the creature awakened again.

But instead of an infernal screech, it was a male voice. They kept cutting, and inside the creature there was a male Saiyan.

"Is Lord Sadala!" everyone screamed. "They are still alive inside them!"

* * *

 **There were some plans for Taura and Esparra final confrontation, but I never went with them. One of the plans during the last chapter was to have Esparra fight the giant Namekian with a monstrous attitude while slowly mutating, inspired by Ridley from Metroid. However, he was being too similar to the old incarnation of Broly and the story was already too packed so I made it anticlimactic on purpose.**

 **Taura and Cabba in the first drafts were meant to fight around the Tree of Might while a war was happening in the background, but I honestly didn't think it was thematically appropriate, so I went for something simple. Besides, I didn't see how Cabba could win against her in that scenario. Another scenario was for Taura to transform into something else -not necessarily a Super Saiyan- like a plant monster or a female Namekian, but it would betray Turles biggest appeal of never needing a shallow transformation.**

 **I'm glad about finishing the conflict with Taura. I was having a really tough time in my personal life so the story entered into a personal arc fatigue for me since chapter 12 or 13.**


	19. The Youngest Elite

**This was possibly the chapter that took me the least time to write in a good while. I thank Ekrolo for helping me with part of the text.**

* * *

 **The Youngest Elite**

 **XIX**

The king came out of the creature's belly with disgusted grunts. He was bathed in the monster internal juices of a disgusting green color similar to vomit. He stood up with difficulty and opened his eyes. Frost sighed relieved, and Cabba calmed himself down.

"I can't see crap." he said quite angry but trying to keep his composure, "tell me where I am now."

With awkwardness, the two patrollers helped him get down from the bed. Despite being close to the king, Cabba didn't see his appearance other than his broken silver armor, due to the walls of the room not allowing to see his face. In any other occasion, he would feel honored to meet the king of the Saiyans, but not this time.

"Well, is a long story." Frost said.

"I'm thirsty."

Frost went to him and offered him a drink by first serving it on a cup, but the king violently grabbed the bottle and drank in the frenzy of a madman without sitting down. To say he was dangerously thirsty would be an understatement.

"By the gods themselves, that was good. I never tasted a wine so good."

"It was water," Cabba said quite apathetic, not even looking at him yet the king managed to hear him.

"Then by the heathens, this water is the most delicious of wines!" he said rising the bottle, like if he was expecting everyone in the room to scream in agreement. The shark patroller was gonna rise his hand but the dolphin stopped him. "What is this, a party or a funeral? Also, who is that?"

Frost, understandably and in a calm fashion, told the patrollers to inform the Saiyan army and proceed to rescue the people captured inside the monsters bellies. Frost then explained everything that has happened with the terrorists to the king.

The king was horrified, but didn't say a word during the explanation.

"I see. So they planted a tree and from it came monsters that had the Saiyans inside of them."

"Basically," Frost said with disbelief. Cabba knew the story was unbelievable for him, sounding like something of a fairy tale. The king raised his finger in a dramatic fashion and accidentally touched Frost's nose, which shocked Cabba.

"Let me guess! This was all because of Lusk's clan! Those scoundrels have been a pest for decades now! Or perhaps Straw the berserk and his army that live in the dark planets of the south galaxy! Or perhaps Loytun or..."

"It wasn't the Space Pirates, king. A Saiyan was behind all of this."

The king was shocked with his mouth wide open. "You're lying."

"I wish. One of your kind did this horrible attack on yourselves, in this case, Taura. They said a bunch of nonsense of wanting to make a revolution with the Saiyans becoming a new race, free them of sins or whatever, I didn't pay too much attention to their speeches. I've fought in more wars than you can count and I'm tired of loonies speeches. She worked with a former member of Planet Ikonda's royalty, and they turned every person in the destroyed Coliseum into monsters. Ikonda's former king Evaprimolca was captured but is on standby mode, so he cannot be interrogated."

"Well, that's heavy. And I can't still see a thing! Can I have more?" The king said holding the bottle.

"Sure, sure. Patrollers, would you be so kind as to give the king something to drink and eat? Regardless, while I did manage to hear of their plans, the truth is that the boy in the other room personally fought against Taura, even landing the killing blow to her."

The king received another bottle and drank it all in a second, asking the patroller to give him more.

"How should history know their group?"

"Pardon?" Frost asked confused.

"Their name! Every group is remembered in history by a name! Lusk's clan, for example."

"Oh," Frost said. "Well, they didn't give a name."

"The Crusher Corps!"

"What?"

"That's their name! Save it, we are calling them that," he said with a smile, proud of himself. Both Frost and Cabba were in disbelief than the king was worried about their name. Frost couhed without knowing what to say, but the king continued." Didn't you say she ate a fruit that fortified her strength? How was she defeated by a child?"

Frost smiled, like if the mood returned to what it should be.

"The kid was trained by the son of a former champion, I'll say that's enough resume for you."

"Nonsense! Unless the kid is a wall of muscle for his age or a prodigy, I won't buy nepotism in here. "

"Oh?" Frost said surprised and walked a moment to think of an argument. Cabba, for one, felt the king was in the right. Frost continued. "Come on, you remember that Taura and her brother were only nine years old when they were found, and they didn't start as prodigies either."

The king drank another bottle.

"Bah! If he is such a big deal, why isn't he speaking with me directly?"

Frost looked at Cabba from the distance. He nodded his head, but Cabba didn't move. With an understanding look, Frost told him to leave that place so the two of them were left alone. Cabba felt like he had a mountain on his shoulders as he had difficulty moving, but left the room not before hearing the king's words.

"I'll tell you Frost, what you're telling me is horrendous. That coliseum has been there for centuries, how else are Saiyans going to prove their guts outside of the war? Their pride?"

Cabba left the room. The Galactic Patrol gave him a set of clothes fashioned after the organization so he wouldn't have to wear the broken uniform of the army, but he couldn't say he felt comfortable wearing it. At least he wasn't half naked like last hour, especially with the cold.

The wasteland was solitary no more, but the capital of Lad Sarced was destroyed alongside the Tree of Might. The buildings he saw since his youth weren't there anymore, which felt like a stab in the stomach, The place smelled horrendous, as the Saiyans were opening the bellies of the monsters in order to free the prisoners. Cabba paid attention to all of them.

A Saiyan soldier he didn't know was speaking with an insectoid alien, an Arlian if he remembered the name correctly. From the way he moved, he was saddened and asking for someone.

"Oh right, Cress."

He kept walking but this time faster. He saw more people of different races out of the corpses of the monsters, but he couldn't see who he wanted. Where were they? They had to be around. He saw a family of guys with purple pointy heads hugging each other, but he didn't care and kept walking. More people, Saiyans, a race he didn't know, some guy with pointy ears, Tech Tech twins…

He found something.

The member of the Galactic Patrol was a tough looking guy, with well-defined muscles but a creepy robotic appearance, with his helmet making him look like some sort of bird. His arm was a sword, and he opened up the creature letting a slender Saiyan out. The man tried standing up, but fell to the ground due to the liquid in the floor. Cabba hurried up to help him.

"Are you okay, captain Renso?"

"Are you authorized to be around here, child?" The patroller asked, but Cabba ignored him.

"Cabba? W-what happened?"

"Is a long story sir. Please, don't move too much."

"I need water, Cabba. Please, give some to me."

Cabba noticed how the patroller was already holding a bottle of water with him, and gave it to the boy, who in turn gave it to Renso who drank like there was no tomorrow.

"Man, I never tasted water so delicious. Although, my vision is blurry."

Cabba helped Renso stood up, but Renso almost fell to the ground. The patroller stopped the fall.

"Kid, look at his right leg."

Cabba took a look, and was horrified: Renso's leg had a deep injury. Cabba, confused, didn't know the meaning of this. He tried to give it a thought, but couldn't think of a reason why he had such injury. He remembered how Kora had her injuries healed despite her being tired when he got her out of the tree, and the king didn't present any problem either.

The patroller intervened.

"He isn't the only one like this, some of the people have this kind of injuries. We are looking for the cause. Leave him to me, I'll send him to the medical staff. You look tired, go find your family, child."

He obeyed the patroller, and went his way. During half an hour he kept between flying and walking, looking for them. To describe that time in a world, it would be _miserable_. Not only he saw how many of the people out of the monsters had the same injuries as Renso, but many people were dead the moment they were rescued. His heartbeats were out of control the more people he saw, it was the complete opposite of the Coliseum during the morning.

The more he flew, the closer he got to where the tree used to be. There was a small squad of Saiyans around, saving the people from the monsters corpses. Incredibly, part of the walls of the Coliseum were still intact. He landed on the ground and the squad saw him with bad eyes.

"What are you doing here, kid?! Scram!"

Grinding his teeth, Cabba turned toward the shouting Saiyan. "Quiet."

"Huh?" He shouted again. "What'd you say?"

"I sad be quiet, I've had a bad day and I'm really not in the mood…"

"Bad day? Kid, everyone's had a bad day! Look at this mess!" He gestured to the bodies around. "You think anyone's in a good mood."

Cabba glared harder at him, taking a few steps forward. "No, I don't think anyone's in a good mood but honestly, I don't give a **damn** right now. Compared to what I've been through and what might still be waiting for me your problems are nothing next to mine. So please... Please... Don't work me up or you'll see firsthand what happened to the last Saiyan who did..."

Seeing that the man wouldn't pester him anymore, if his shaking hands and wide-eyed stare were any indication, Cabba walked away, continuing his search.

The sound of a scalpel opening up the stomach of one of the monsters sounded, and the sound of a man screaming was heard, a familiar voice. Without losing a single second, Cabba ran towards it, finally finding him and hugged him with all of his strength.

"Father, please talk to me!" He took a look at the men beside them, and with a commanding voice said, "Please, give me some water now, people!"

His father coughed the red liquid from inside the monster. Like Renso, he had an injury on the leg side of his face. It would be hard to describe it, it was as profound as a scar but it left a mark similar to a severe burn. One of the Saiyans hurried and gave him a bottle of water, and Cabba put it in his father's mouth, who drank it all in an instant. He opened his eyes with some difficulty.

"H-hey, hello Cabba."

"Are you okay? I can find a doctor..."

"Son, thanks for worrying about me. My head hurts, so please find him."

Cabba hugged him again, and then left the squad take him. Cabba was relieved, with no doubt in his mind that it would be possible his mother and brother were alright too. Some members of the squad were discussing something, and Cabba couldn't help but hear their conversation.

"Can you believe it? Despite the tree destroying everything, some the walls didn't collapse!"

"Yeah I can! Is a miracle of Saiyan history! Just wait until the colonel hears this." The man got close to one of the walls and lied down on it. "Look! Is still strong to support my weight!"

In a second, the wall crumbled with the man getting crushed by the rocks. He screamed but otherwise didn't receive any meaningful injuries. From the ground of the walls an immense heat came out, and a familiar figure was seen.

"Cho-po!"

With a confused expression in his face, the metal man came from the hole. Cabba couldn't contain his joy, and rushed to hug him, although he got burned as everyone knows a Metal Man shouldn't be touched due to their bodies containing lava. He signed after seeing the red marks on his hands.

"Yikes. Heh, well I walked into that one." Cabba said holding his calm, and gave a thumbs up to the creature. "Thank you for being alive, Magetta."

The Metal Man was flattered. More Metal Men appeared behind him, as there was an entire underground tunnel under the coliseum ruins. The Saiyans were confused about such scene, so much one of them went to Cabba to talk with him.

"Hey kid, you're friends with these creatures?"

"Sir," Cabba said not as a respectful rookie, but with a voice holding severe annoyance. "You will refer to them as Metal Men, and him in particular is called Auta Magetta. And my name is Cabba, the guy who saved all of you from the one behind all of this. Understood?"

Confused, but remembering how the kid reacted earlier, simply shrugged and spoke again.

"All right Cabba, whatever you say. I just wanted to mention that out of all the races we found inside these creatures, the Metal Men weren't around them. I wonder why."

"They are tough, perhaps the toughest in the universe, so they couldn't be absorbed by the tree. And this one saved my life. Perhaps everyone."

The men were left puzzled by what he said. Cabba stayed with the Metal Men for an hour, without saying much as he didn't want to return to his thoughts. The creatures walked among the population, with some even helping with the rescue teams when they understood the situation. He felt calm, but this sense of tranquility wouldn't last as the patrollers arrived with an order from Frost to return with him.

Without any objections, Cabba returned to the base.

The king and Frost were in the same place as before, with the king still drinking like crazy, but this time there were two more people in the room: Renso and a doctor from the Galactic Patrol. Renso was in a bed, blindfolded.

"Ah, Cabba! You're here!" Frost said, eating a candy bar. "We were waiting for you, young one."

"So this is the one?" the king said, looking at him. His eyes could be compared with the ones of an angry tiger, due to how severe they were. "He is so scrawny, looks like he could be easily broken. I hoped to see something more surprising once my sight returned, Frost."

"Well, he fought Taura personally and won. I can confirm."

"Hpmh!"

Cabba looked at Renso. Even if he couldn't see his eyes, he knew he was disappointed in what happened with his aunt. To think she turned him into one of those monsters, and had a broken leg now due to it.

"We spoke with the captain here." Frost said in a calm fashion. "A few years ago, he said Taura came to his house to tell him she found a spiky fruit and that the Sadala Elite would be informed about it. Correct?"

"Yes," Cabba said bluntly.

"Bah!" The king said after finishing a bottle and throwing it to the wall, "Lies and treacheries from the betrayer and witch she was! The Sadala Elite was never informed of such fruit. Only this moron and **you** knew about it. "

The feeling of the countless stabs in his chest returned. Cabba put himself in the ground.

"Please forgive me! I… is my fault! I knew it! From the beginning! I knew she wasn't trustworthy! I knew about the fruit and didn't say anything! I don't know what I can do to ask for forgiveness, even if that means ending my life here and now sir!"

There was silence. The king grabbed him by the head in a painful way, but Cabba didn't scream.

"Give me a break! The one we have to thank for this is such a melodramatic coward?! Stand proud, you're not even acting like a Saiyan!"

The king tossed him into the ground again. Cabba raised his head while kneeling, looking at both of them. The king looked directly at his eyes.

"Our newest member should feel proud of his victory. And the youngest one too."

The king left the room while still drinking. Cabba didn't know exactly how to feel, but he can't lie saying he felt butterflies in his stomach. Is like he has been lost in a tunnel for an entire year, and finally found the light.

Frost, however, wasn't entirely happy. The doctor, who was looking at Renso wound in the leg, finally spoke.

"I congratulate you, Cabba, right? But while we saved many of the people captured by the plant monsters created by the "Crusher Corps" he said like if he wasn't convinced of the name," they were affected harshly."

"What do you mean?" Cabba asked.

"You see, this is a huge mess. You know that once a part of the body is damaged, the cells try their best to fix the tissue so it can be at full potential?"

"Yes," Cabba said. He was remembering what Renso taught him in the desert many years ago, of Saiyans growing stronger every time they get near-death experiences, "we have good healing cells, right sir? I think is due to them that I managed to defeat Taura."

The man, with a horrified expression looking at Renso, took his time to say the right words.

"Cabba... those cells have been damaged. The cells of the victims can't fully regenerate."

That day, the strongest army in the universe was crippled, with many of the people under their protection too suffering their same fate. But so was a new Saiyan born from this tragedy, determined to work for the peace in the galaxy.

* * *

 **Author's note: There is only one chapter left, and it involves a certain girl whose fate's hasn't been revealed. For this chapter, I heard Civil War by Gun & Roses. This chapter was inspired by certain events that are personal to me, but I rather not reveal more about it.**

 **I made sure to not include any description of Lord Sadala, so that if he ever appears in the canon of the series this fic won't be Outdated by Canon, although I'm certain the fic won't be similar to canon in the following years. Regardless, unlike Salagir from DBM, I don't hold favoritism with my ideas nor I won't consider them better than whatever the Dragon Room came out with. I'm not that arrogant, as I can see my flaws as a writer.**


	20. Golden Heart

**Scrap last chapter, this is the faster chapter I ever wrote.**

* * *

 **Golden Heart**

 **XX**

They passed through a strange looking machine in the hills while flying on the hovercar. His mother told him they were planted by the Frost's empire in order to help the planet recover part of what the attack did to the ecosystem. She worked for the government so she liked to gossip, and he won't lie, he too enjoyed hearing the rumors she could hear.

But when it came to how much money those machines cost, she remained quiet. He didn't want to imagine how many zeroes were in the credits.

They arrived to the court by midday, a circular and modern building with an architecture based on the style of the empire. There were a lot of people around, with stern expressions on their faces. They wanted answers, they wanted someone responsible for everything. Yet, Cabba couldn't really find an answer of why this had to happen.

He entered the building alongside his mother. Despite everything that happened, he didn't had to say anything. A week earlier, after being informed of the health of the victims of the attack, the king called him personally to the palace. Part of the palace was destroyed, but the throne was left unharmed.

He was completely alone, and directly the king told him Renso was getting arrested.

"But sir! He is completely innocent in all of this!"

"Innocent? Bah!" The king yelled while looking at the destroyed capital through the balcony. "Look at my kingdom! Do you know how much money will this take to recover?" The king took a breath and walked alone for a while, trying to think of the words he could say to the kid. "Should I tell you how many people died? People we were meant to protect? At least a thousand killed, boy!"

Cabba didn't reply, merely remaining silent. The king took a breath, and continued while trying to be calm.

"At least four thousand people injured, and one thousand dead. Among those four thousand, part of our army! Of every class! You hear what the doctors said about their cells being damaged, maybe they can't ever recover!"

Cabba bowed his head, and remained quiet. The king walked directly to him, and pointed at him behind his neck, touching it repeatedly like if he wanted to perforate it with his finger.

"Renso knew about that blasted fruit, and did nothing. If it wasn't for that injury, I'll send him to the darkest places in the cosmos just to see if he ends up killed, but I'm a good man. I'll just arrest him for suspicion of treason!"

"But, but sir! What about me? Why do you promote me if I too knew about it?"

While still angry, the king put himself in front of him and lowered his head to match him. They looked directly at the eyes, but the king eyes were scary beyond reason.

"You're worthless as a prisoner. You killed that damn witch, and I see fit to reward you for it. You're a member of the Elite Saiyans now, congratulations, but listen to this very well." The king then poked him in his chest. "You will live. Work with Frost directly, and make sure he is proud of having you around. If Frost ever whispers you're useless, I'm demoting you. Understood?"

Cabba raised his arm and did a military salute to the king.

"Permission to speak, sir." Cabba said with a voice tone down from before. There wasn't any point in discussing Renso's fate anymore, much less with a furious king. The king did a sign with his hand while drinking another bottle of water. "Taura received help from someone else. A woman..." Cabba started to tear up a little. He hates to think about her, as any occasion he remembered her he felt his chest hurt again or his flesh being drained up. "...a woman. She could change her form, taking the form of a Saiyan doctor named Yarrow. _She tortured me_."

The king paid attention to his tale.

"She revived Taura's brother, but something weird happened and he…, exploded alongside the tree. Once Taura was down, she appeared before me and told me she only used her, and left."

"You left her flee?"

"There was nothing I could do. I spoke with an afterimage, an illusion of hers. She returned to her home, called the Demon Realm if I heard correctly. She needed the energy to go there."

"Hmph!"

The king sat on his throne, thinking of what to say. After a few minutes of silence where Cabba remained on his position without moving an inch, the king spoke. "Bold of you to say this. Why did you feel the need to tell me this?"

"I don't want to live in more lies, sir. I beg you, let's make her pay for what she did."

Lord Sadala stood up and walked directly to him. He put his hand on his shoulder, and with an understanding voice, which at this point sounded out of character in him, said:

"We will do that. Now go home, you're dismissed."

He returned to the present, and saw how his mother was writing in her computer, absorbed in her thoughts. He was mentally preparing what he was gonna say, but everything that came to his mind was gibberish. There was a plant in the hall, he wanted to burn it down.

"Mama, I have a question."

"Ask away, is your day!" She said without stopping to look at the computer.

"Do any of the criminals in the records, like the Space Pirates, ever feel regret for their actions once they are captured?"

"Well," his mother stopped for a minute to think of an answer, "no, I think not. Some of them were even proud of their deeds. You know them, rotten eggs since the beginning."

"How I envy evil not feeling any sort of regret," Cabba said without much enthusiasm. His mother looked at him worried, but four men arrived at the hall, not giving her time to speak with him. One of them was a really short man compared to the mountains of muscle alongside him, who were holding clothes in their hands. The midget with the weird mustache -who looked like he never slept a day of his life- spoke with a deep voice.

"Greetings. In the name of the king, we thank you for your efforts in stopping the terrorist attack caused by our former champion."

Cabba wanted to tell them it was an honor to be useful, but the truth was that he didn't do much. He couldn't stop thinking that it was his fault Kora and Cress died. He barely knew them, but didn't deserve to die such a brutal way. He was still puzzled by what that witch Camelo said about a pure heart. He didn't felt victorious, he felt like a lucky loser.

"We must apologize, but the king right now is too busy preparing the documents for the capital's reconstruction, so he can't greet you right now."

"I..." Cabba tried to speak but was too nervous.

"He doesn't mind," His mother said in a hurry.

"Yeah, I don't." He said bluntly.

The man took a small computer from his pocket and turned it on without even taking his eyes off Cabba. Cabba thought he was quite creepy, as he wasn't blinking. He took a long breath, and started speaking.

"In the name of Lord Sadala, highest authority of the Saiyan kingdom, we grant you the title of Elite Class, the highest honor a member of the Sadala Defense Force could have. The title allows you to free travel to any planet you want without the need of a higher commander, but you will still need to follow the regulations, otherwise, you will be arrested and your title will be taken from you. You will also be given a personal space ship. You will earn an annual salary of 30000 credits, but you can still enter jobs done by the Sadala's Guild once it's rebuilt, and you will earn it through an account granted by you," the man moved his left hand, and the giant men took a step forward, "following these indications, you are granted the use of a new uniform. You are aware of the symbolism of them, correct?"

"Yes sir."

"Good, fewer explanations for me. Choose any of them."

The men were holding uniforms of different colors: gray, green and pink. The color gray represented the loyalty to the kingdom, green represents the camaraderie between the soldiers, and pink represented the loyalty to the common folks. Cabba thought that the symbolism was exciting to him at one point, but now he just saw those colors as nothing but a piece of fabric. Taura wore the gray uniform and wanted to change everything he ever knew, and Kora didn't really care for the symbolism, just wanted to wear something that looked good on her. Cress was a good comrade and Cabba wouldn't have survived without him, but the color green just reminded him of that witch...

Truth is, he didn't feel worthy of any of them.

"Can I refuse the change of uniform, sir?"

Everyone in the room looked at him, like if he said a slur in front of them.

"I don't feel like I deserve such honor. I'm my mind, using the color blue represents both my respect for the royal family and my fellow rookies who will help rebuild our society, but it also means I can get much stronger and not be a top dog. I want to protect my homeland from something like this ever happening, right now I'm not ready!"

The man didn't blink at all. While the men looked at each other, the midget simply shrugged.

"A romantic, aren't you? I'll ask the king about it, but if we say no, is no."

"U-understood, sir."

The men left the hall without him receiving anything. His mom stepped forward and put his hand on his shoulder.

"That's quite noble, but I think you made a dumb choice. I think the gray uniform looks good, the blue never looked threatening or interesting to me."

"Is not a reason to fear, but to trust. Saiyans have to protect the weak, how will they trust us if they fear us?"

His mother smiled. "I never thought about it. Which is silly, as I work chronicling the history of this planet, and I'm ready to enter the fight if I'm called. Well, I also have a local hero now as my son, so I should start thinking about this kind of stuff."

Cabba blushed, but didn't say anything. He had nothing in his head at the moment.

He left for the desert, leaving his mother to sign the regulations. Thanks to a payment he received, he stopped at one point in the capital to buy something.

There was something comfortable about the heat of the desert.

The desert was vast and solitary. The desert was never alone due to the rookies training and shooting at the sky or the Metal Men being around, but this time there was nobody around, with nothing but the wind to share his thoughts with, alongside a small box.

"Hey!"

He looked beside him, and recognized that porcupine-shaped hair everywhere. She didn't have her usual spunk that day, but a mellow expression Cabba never thought to see in her. She was wearing a hood, like trying to be hidden.

"Hey. I… I didn't see you all week."

"I've had a lot of stuff happening to me. Crazy week, huh? Took me a while to find you."

Cabba didn't say anything. Caulifla got closer to him, and sat alongside him.

"What is in the box?"

Cabba opened the box, filled with twelve honey donuts from planet Cinnam. He gave Caulifla one, and she ate it without a care in the world.

"This is delicious!"

"I know. I always wanted to know what they tasted like, and I was lucky to find someone selling them around town."

"You earned that money by being promoted?"

"Yes," Cabba said bluntly.

"Well, congratulations. Hope you feel good about yourself."

He didn't. Cabba didn't say anything. What is he supposed to say? _Oh jeez sorry Caulifla for killing the aunt you loved so much and getting your brother arrested. Can we remain friends?_ They both took a donut and ate it while looking at the horizon.

"This is a nice view." She said. "Why did you come here?"

"You see, the captain trained me here." Cabba pointed at the sky with a joyful expression, "Right now this place is empty, but is usually lively with the amount of Metal Men and rookies shooting at the sky, trying to hit something up in space!"

"No kidding? " Caulifla said with her mouth quite open, "You ever hit something?"

"No..." he said with complete shame on himself, but then stood up quite proud, "but that's nothing to be ashamed of! During the games, I met a member of the Elite who never managed to hit one herself!"

"I want to try it!" and she grabbed him by the hands while running, "come let's try it!"

She forced him to go to the middle of the desert, looking for any star to shoot. It took a while, but they saw one, a big green rock that should be easier than the other cases. "Now, watch this", and Cabba put himself in battle formation by putting his feet in the right order, started to charge energy from his hands. "first, you put your feet firmly on the ground so is easier to aim, charge and then... SHOOT!"

Cabba released a powerful purple blast to the skies, with enough strength that it could be felt everywhere in that place. The blast went and went, getting closer and closer to the rock... and hit it!

"Can't believe it... I did it!"

He didn't manage to hit the whole rock, only the corner, but it was enough for him that he started to jump in a frenzy. Caulifla was also impressed, even starting to squeezed her knuckles.

"Hey, congrats! But let's see if I can hit it myself!"

She imitated Cabba by putting her legs in a good formation, but she didn't put her hands in a position to launch the Garlick Buster, simply aiming with her right hand while the other held her left. She charged her energy screaming a bit, and released a powerful crimson blast to the sky.

The blast almost hit it!

"Amazing Caulifla!" Cabba said quite amazed with his mouth quite open, "you almost did it in your first try!"

"Heh heh! I'm awesome, right?" She said with a huge grin. "Did you think I couldn't do it?

"Kinda, "Cabba said bluntly. "Is only that you never train..."

"What?!" Caulifla screamed loud enough to shatter Cabba's ears, "of course I train! Every day, even! Just because you don't see me doesn't mean I don't do it!

"But, you look so skinny and all..."

"The bamboo whiner is talking!" She said, without taking away her grin. "You don't really know me, do you?"

She started to laugh, leaving Cabba quite puzzled at what was going though her mind.

"You know, Renso trained me ever since I was a kid in order to join the forces or even consider it, but screw that crap!" She raised her first while grinning but then her expression turned to disappointment, "although, I was motivated to be the strongest based of what I heard of my family. I heard of both my parents and aunt, but I didn't want to be like them: I wanted to be better than them on my terms!"

Cabba stood quiet, feeling a sense of guilt again. Caulifla noticed and her expression turned to anger.

"Cheer up, you pipsqueak!"

"I-I'm sorry!"

"Stop being so sorry about everything! Aren't you supposed to be a member of the Sadala Elite? Then act like one. Instead of crying all the time, you should be using that energy to do your work. Can't believe I lost to you!"

Cabba stood quiet, but awkwardly raised his thumb in her direction.

"All right..." he said, quite timid.

Caulifla didn't waste time and fist bumped his thumb up.

"I'll train to defeat you one day, Cabba."

"And...and I'll train to become the best soldier I could be."

She grinned. She saw the vast desert again completely calm, and grinned audaciously again.

"I think I'm going to follow your method, and live in the desert!"

Cabba was bamboozled, with his mouth open.

"It means I'm running from home!" She said with a smirk, "Considering I became the niece of a well know criminal, there is no life for me in the city. While you stick your nose on other planets, I get to know this one by myself, got it?"

Cabba didn't really know what to say, but he understood her. Caulifla was never gonna follow the rules society asked her, she was too much of a free spirit to do so. Something about her was admirable in a way. Regardless, Cabba accepted it and raised his thumb in approval.

"Please, take care of yourself."

"So do you, and show me what a Sadala' Elite can do."

They shook hands while smiling at each other before she left the place. Cabba felt sad to see her go, but knew it was for the better. He heard about her in the following months on how she became an infamous bandit with many followers, many who became orphans due to Taura's attack, and how her turf became feared for the Sadala Defense Force. But that's a story for another time.

The following day, he woke up all prepared to leave the planet wearing a new uniform based on the one that was destroyed last week. He ate velocirator eggs, the usual. His mother who was in the table with him screamed, satisfied.

"Finally! I think I'm done!"

"You finally finished?" Cabba said bluntly.

"Yeah. I needed to finish this report for last week, but I lost part of the info due to the attack. Now I can have some rest."

He simply smiled and finished his breakfast. Cabba went to his father room. In his 13 years of life, he didn't remember ever going in there. It was a plain room with a window, with some photos in the wall, and his father was in bed, full of bandages in his head and legs. Cabba recognized every person in the wall, except for one of them: a man that was alongside his father, with a hair similar to Cabba's but taller than he could ever wish to be, wearing a blue armor. They had the same eyes, and Cabba knew who he was.

"Hey, is the soldier of the family!" his father said with a big smile.

"Greetings father, are you feeling better?"

"To be frank, no. My head and legs hurt like hell. I'm enduring it. What's worst, we were robbed again and the cameras show it was another Namekian with some Saiyan girl. What a pest!"

Cabba didn't say anything. It didn't take him long enough to know who he was talking about. Considering everything he came to know, he decided to let it sly.

"If my brother knew about all the stuff that happened, he would piss his pants. You're brave."

Cabba bowed his head, not knowing what to say. It was a weird experience he could never forget, and to think his family was close to death made him visibly angry.

"Father, I'm going to the war with the Space Pirates. I believe that following Frost's guidance, I feel this universe could shine. It sounds silly, I know, but..."

His father, with clear pain by doing so, raised his hand to reach his son's shoulder.

"Is alright, follow him. You believe in him, so I do too."

And with his father's blessing, he left the room satisfied. He went to the hangar, where his brother -wearing the same headphones as last week- was checking the space ship that arrived last night. It was small, but the right size for him. "Hey Cabba!" his brother greeted him, "I was checking this baby, and let me tell you I'm dissapointed."

"Why is that? I thought dad said it was a good model."

"Is a good model!" he said while cleaning his hands, "I knew the models given to the members of the army were better than the things we sell, and I'm quite impressed. This thing can cross the hyperspace despite how small it is! But I noticed one awful thing."

"Really?" Cabba asked. In his mind, he could see himself alone in the vacuum of space due to a problem with the ship, and didn't want to suffer that scenario.

"Yes!" Suybe then pressed a button of the controller in his hand, and music started to sound in all the house. "It doesn't have a music system, and the artificial intelligence is quite outdated!" Suyve shouted, but Cabba only heard half of it. "How the hell are you gonna entertain yourself?!"

"Turn that trash down, jeez!"

After hearing the shout of their mother, the two boys obeyed without a second to doubt, turning the music down. After that, Cabba entered the ship, and was surprised with how comfortable it was. Before closing the window, his brother stopped him.

"Don't forget this, by the way!"

"What's that, Syube?" Cabba asked.

"Is a chip with music, from The Waves!

"Ah", Cabba remembered, "that thing from last week." Cabba took the chip and put it on the radio of the ship. "I'll make sure to listen to it, although I'm not a big fan of music."

"Listen to it! You will become a fan, is their hit album _Golden Heart_! Take it as a thing to remember us all during the war!"

Cabba smiled about it.

"All right then. Take care, and you too, mom!"

"Remember to grow some inches and find a girlfriend!" She said with a smirk on her face, and he felt embarrassed.

Cabba left the planet while hearing the music of his brother. He liked having something of his family with him, but the simple truth is that he hated that music. Regardless, following the indications of Lord Sadala he went to planet Mayone, where he would have to follow Frost and his army for a time to stop the Space Pirates from stealing the resources of the planet.

 _You're nothing._

"I'll prove my worth." Cabba muttered to himself. "Count on it. No one is dying on my watch."

* * *

 **Author's Note: And so, I finished this fanfic. It was a long journey, but I'm happy I ended up finishing a long story. I want to thank you for taking the time to read it, kind reader.**  
 **Originally Frost was gonna go with Cabba to receive the uniform, but I think I used him too much in the story.**

 **Maybe I'll write another story in the future, but who knows if that happens. Right now I'm more worried about having an editor fix all my grammatic mistakes.**


	21. Epilogue: Truth, part 1

**Surprise.**

* * *

 **Sadala Chronicles**

 **Special Epilogue**

 **The Meaning of Truth - Tournament of Destroyers**

 **I**

Age 779.

Six months have happened since his arrival at Mayone, where a group of Space Pirates invaded the planet to steal the natural resources. The pirates were tough, using special equipment to fight Frost's forces and the mighty Saiyans, the strongest mercenary group in the universe.

However, after six months, they were close to defeating the group in the grand Dukan bridge that led to the capital of the planet. They were all fighting the last members of the evil pirates, that wore armors made of bio-mechanical-bones, tough enough to endure the strength of the Saiyans.

One of his fellow Saiyans was struggling with the leader, a man that belonged to a race with goat horns and yellow mantis eyes named Manza. He never heard the name of his race, but he was a powerful foe.

The two were fighting shoulder to shoulder without neither backing down.

"Gah! You're strong, but you're nothing compared to us!"

"Annoying muscle-head!" Manza yelled.

Then, Manza punched him in the neck with enough strength to send him flying. His comrade almost fell below the bridge and didn't get up.

"Be proud of your strength all you like, monkeys!" Manza said with a smug grin, "we are taking all of the silver liquid of this carcass of a planet, and there is nothing you people can do about it!"

He flew towards him in a reckless act. Seeing him flying, Manza attacked Cabba with enough strength that both end up punching their faces in a cross-counter, and their strength made the earth shake.

Manza chuckled when he saw the opponent that was half his size, barely reaching his hips.

"What is this? A child? Do I look like a nanny?"

Cabba spat blood on the ground.

"I'm a Saiyan from Planet Sadala named Cabba!"

Without a time to lose, Manza took Cabba's arm and threw him into the ground. He then prepared to stab Cabba with his sword leg.

"What a lame name, boyo!"

Manza tried to step on the young Saiyan's head, but Cabba stopped him by grabbing his sword with his hands. Manza was chuckling as the brat's hands were bleeding as the flesh was being ripped, but that chuckle turned into anger, as he was getting burned. Cabba was overheating the blade with his energy which in turn was burning the pirate leader.

"Let go of me, boyo!"

"I will not allow you to hurt my comrades or anyone else!"

Before the flames got more heated, Cabba let go of him and got up, repeatedly kicking him with the precision of a fencer and the strength of a hammer all over his body.

Manza fell to the ground, but in a villainous audacity took a remote control out of his pocket.

"You guys can destroy a planet, but can you stop a heart attack coming from your bodies? "

Cabba stood still, shocked. "What?!" He tried shooting at the remote controller, but Manza moved his hand, letting himself be attacked instead.

"In few seconds, I shall unleash a powerful virus in all the planet. You won't even survive it. So long, you annoying apes!"

Then, a red blast appeared from the side and destroyed the controller. Entering the bridge there was a giant blue reptilian with an audacious grin.

Cabba couldn't contain his joy.

"Frost, my lord!"

"I'm here!" he said grinning while making a peace sign.

* * *

Frost took out the remaining pirates, and Cabba rushed to his comrade. Luckily, he was alive, just unconscious. He noticed something strange, a small hole in the neck. Cabba touched it, and for a few seconds felt dizzy.

When he recovered himself, he helped him get up.

"W-what… what happened?"

"Manza took you down with a poisonous needle, alright," Cabba said to him while getting up. "I shared some of my energy with you, but is not as good as the healing pods."

His comrade stood up rather violently and pushed him aside.

"To think I had to be saved by the scrawny new blood, bah!"

Cabba didn't say anything. Ever since he arrived there, some of his senior Saiyans made it clear they didn't like him. The terrorist attack from six months ago made them in the group suspect he was only brought up as a sort of nepotism, that he didn't deserve to be there.

He didn't think that, not this time at least. He's probably angry about his prey being stolen, Saiyan's are antsy about that.

 _Man, now my hands are bleeding._ _I n_ _eed to treat the_ _se_ _injuries._

While carrying Manza on his shoulder with his big arm, Frost got close to him to greet him. They haven't seen each other for a while, at least three months. Frost was in his second form, a transformation of his that makes him 250 centimeters tall, with Cabba barely reaching his knees.

"I apologize for getting late. I was busy with another group at the other side of the planet. I'm impressed you still look the same, young Cabba."

Cabba bowed his head in sign of respect towards his hero.

"Is alright, sir. While it was rough, there were no casualties on neither side. I made sure of it."

"Good, good! I believe everyone can be useful. Oh! Look at your hands, do you need help?"

"No, sir. I'll look for bandages later."

"Hope you do that. By the way, have you… heard anything unusual from your comrades?"

"No, sir." Cabba said bluntly," They are loyal."

"Good. Let's not repeat history again." he then spanked Manza's back, "Well, I'm taking this bad boy to the Galactic Patrol and speak with the governor. Do you need anything?"

"No, sir." Cabba said bluntly.

"Ah, don't say that. Is time to celebrate, don't you want some money to eat some good food?"

Cabba's stomach was growling. Ever since he arrived at the planet, he hadn't eaten anything delicious in a good time other than tasteless rations and whatever animal he could find in nature.

He still had to decline.

"No, sir. If I were to eat anything, can all the members of my squad too?"

"Of course all of you would! My goodness, who do you take me for?"

Frost then got a pair of silver rods from his back. He didn't exactly know how Frost hid credits, as he didn't even knew if he even had pockets. Cabba took them, and bowed his head once again before the emperor left.

 **II**

The party was quite intense. The governor, who was grateful for their efforts, let the Saiyans enjoy their time on the capital's square. There was tons of wine and beer, but the food was unappetizing.

"Yikes." One his comrades -a wall of muscle of almost two meters tall- said, "Look, we saved the planet and all and it was fun to fight, but ending it reminds me we never receive a proper reward for our efforts."

"What more would you want?" Another Saiyan said, a more slender but still visibly threatening guy. "We aren't Elite soldiers, we only receive a basic payment compared with those guys."

"Bah! Those guys. You guys heard the Coliseum in the capital was destroyed, right? I heard that one of the Elite members destroyed it while starting a terrorist attack."

"Yeah, and her nephew Renso was arrested. What a true shame, that captain was alright, I served under him in a mission. He trained non-combatants back home."

"Well, what are you gonna do."

Cabba arrived at the place carrying a fray full of delicious looking meat while having his hands bandaged. The meat -from different species of dinosaurs, animals and fishes- was expensive, costing around 30000 credits (which is what two silver rods would amount), something that very few people could afford -not even he, with his annual salary being exactly that-, and enough to satisfy an entire village of regular humanoid species for a week. To his small squad of eight Saiyans, it would be enough for a night.

"I brought food, everyone. Let's have a feast!"

Everyone was overjoyed in celebration, although some of them looked angry at him. Not surprisingly, it was the comrade he saved before who asked the question.

"You bought that with what money, brat?"

"Frost paid us a handsome reward, I think that's all you need to know, Nio."

"Hmph." Nio returned to his drink. "You hang around too much with him. What are you, a sort of toy to him?"

He ignored the comment.

* * *

Everyone celebrated, but Cabba kept his distance keeping an eye on the surroundings. He could never be too careful. He drank a bit of the wine, but the taste wasn't exactly pleasing. Eating meat however was a treat, as he so long missed the flavor.

But eating would be easier if it wasn't for the pain in his hands.

"So, what do you think those Elite guys are doing now?"

"Who knows" Nio replied. "Those guys couldn't care less of what we low-life do, so we should pay with the same coin."

"Is weird it took us so long to finish this mission," Nio said. "They had weird weapons, made us Saiyans look like chumps."

"Luckily we had no casualties. The pirates grow stronger every day. If only we knew who the true leader is."

"The "true" leader? What do you mean by that?" Cabba asked.

The two looked at him, with Nio looking at him with a stern looking in his eyes.

"Mind your own business, brat." Nio said before returning to his drink.

Cabba looked at him annoyed, not knowing what his deal was. The other guy -named _Repol_ \- took a bite from his meat and looked at him grinning a little.

"New blood, the pirates aren't a fully organized group. They are different factions with different goals. If it wasn't for their leaders, they would be fighting by themselves. And those leaders must have a leader, just like we Saiyans have captains led by the king. Every leader we have captured, including Lusk and Manza, was nothing more than a smokescreen."

"I...I see." Cabba said.

"Everyone knows that, New Blood," the guy said in a mocking fashion. Cabba paid no attention to it and tried to relax while enjoying his meat. "Is the cycle of life. We are pawns, with two players controlling both sides of the conflict."

"You make it sound like is a good thing," Nio said, taking the complete leg of a stegosaurus, "I may work for the army, but one day I will challenge the king and rule everyone! I will become a player!"

"Yeah, right." Repol mocked him by strangling his own neck, acting like if he couldn't breathe, "Good luck with that, frog neck!"

The two then started to fight. The captain of the squad had to stop them, telling them to leave to the outside of the city to not disturb the citizens. Cabba thought about what they said for a bit.

 _Well, they may have leaders,_ Cabba thought, _but at the end of the day, they are evil. They won't ever feel regret for their actions._

The party continued normally for an hour. Nio and Repol returned extremely injured, with Nio resulting victorious in the fight. He threw Repol on the fountain and started drinking again before he fell to the ground. The squad laughed at their stupidity.

Their laugh was stopped when a mysterious woman arrived at the party, though. Cabba saw her, and a strange and familiar feeling came to him.

"Greetings gentlemen." She said with a serene expression, like if she wasn't aware of being surrounded by a bunch of Saiyans, "I was informed Frost would be on this planet. Can anyone of you tell me where?"

She didn't transmit any sort of energy.

She was a really tall and attractive woman. Cabba would barely reach her torso if they were to compare. She was of a pale blue skin color, with a long silver hair held in a ponytail, and her mysterious purple eyes were intriguing. She wore a strange green outfit, while holding a staff as long as her.

 _You are nothing._

In a flash, he hid from her under the table, hoping nobody would notice.

Sadly, they noticed.

"What are you doing, Cabba?" One of them said while laughing, "Are you afraid of women?"

His breathing became irregular.

 _Yes,_ _I'm afraid_!

One of the men got close to her, a guy with a really messy and pointy hair who was clearly drunk. "Hey babe, you look like my kind of woman!" She didn't reply, but her expression was no longer serene. It was cold. "What do you say? Don't you want to bear the child of a Saiyan?"

She smiled.

"You Saiyans evolved from simians, right? I wonder what would happen if you evolved from something else."

And in a very calm fashion, she touched him with her stab.

The man, who was a big guy with defined muscles, started to scream. His skin turned pink, his nose vanished, and he slowly and painfully became smaller and smaller, until there was nothing but a little pig that was even smaller than Cabba.

The squad freaked out.

"Ah! Frost, right?" said the same guy turned now into a pig, "He is in the governor's home! I'm sorry for annoying you, mistress!"

The woman smiled once again like if nothing ever happened, and went into the direction of the building while walking calmly.

They all looked at Cabba instantly.

"New blood, why did you hide from her?" One of them asked while pointing at the pig, "do you know that woman?"

Cabba didn't say anything, he merely kept hidden under the table.

 **III**

The men tried to get him out of the table, but it was no use. Cabba even kicked them to get away from him. Disappointed in him, they called him a coward for hiding information from them.

He ignored them. They don't know, they will never know what that woman -if she was even the same woman- did to him. And to think she was after Frost. He felt ashamed of himself for not doing anything but hiding, his hero was possibly in danger and he was doing nothing.

Suddenly, a new voice entered the place.

"Young Cabba, stand up. There is nothing to be afraid of."

The smooth voice of Frost calmed him down. With caution, he got out of the table and saw him as he knew him, in his normal form that was as tall as him. His red eyes calmed him down.

"Are you feeling alright?"

"S-sir… are you yourself?"

"Why of course I am myself. What kind of silly question is that?"

"W-where...where is that woman?"

Behind Frost there was the building of the governor in the distance, where the woman was waiting for them. Cabba felt relieved he was talking with the real deal.

"We need to talk with you about something. As a member of the Elite, you should show a better side of yourself, you know?"

All the Saiyans screamed in an incredulous voice, impressed of Cabba's status. "Excuse me for not telling you. I wanted to be treated as an equal with you." Cabba said after recovering his courage, and then looking at the pig that stood with his legs like a human.

The Saiyans looked at him with unconvincing smiles.

"No! No! Is okay, sir!" Nio said after recovering himself, "We apologize for troubling you all this time! Please take us into consideration for your next mission!"

His false expression annoyed him. Just a moment he was talking about defeating the king and now he is treating him like a prince. What a hypocrite.

He followed Frost to the governor's home, where they would talk with the mysterious woman.

The inside of the governor's home was comfortable, with the chimney making it feel like an inn. Despite having a chair to sit, the woman remained standing, looking at the both of them. Both Cabba and Frost sat in their respective chairs.

"Thanks for finding him, Frost."

"It was no big deal. I have to thank the governor for letting us use his office. So well, you asked me for the strongest Saiyan, now what do you need?"

Did he hear correctly? The strongest Saiyan? What was Frost speaking about?

"Good, good." She said with her serene voice looking at Cabba. "My name is Vados. I'm the attendant of Lord Champa, the God of Destruction of this universe."

The God of destruction? Frost did said one he knew the gods, is that why he and Vados are so formal with each other? What exactly is a god of destruction anyway?

"Lord Champa and his brother Beerus," she continued, this time looking at Frost, "are hosting a tournament with fighters from both universes all for the sake of a planet named Earth, and he wanted the strongest fighters."

Earth, right? That planet has been long inhabited, it was destroyed by countless civil wars and pollution from the native species a long time ago, as Renso told him once. Renso visited the planet to search for a pirate leader and it was a wasteland where nothing could ever grow again. To think that Sadala was close to that fate just a mere six months ago sent shivers up his spine.

"And he asked for me?" Frost asked with an audacious grin on his face. "Why, fighting to impress the God of Destruction would be an honor anyone would love to have, but I must decline. Right now we just finished stopping the conflict in this place, and there is another I must attend."

She chuckled, although with a soft voice.

"I imagined," she winked at him, "but Lord Champa has an offer you cannot refuse."

Frost looked at her interested. His tail was even moving in interesting ways.

"If you manage to defeat just one opponent, Lord Champa will provide full support for your army."

"Wh-what did you said?! "Frost exclaimed, even falling from his seat before standing again trying to hold his composure. "Are you serious? Well, this is certainly a most unexpected piece of good news. All right then! I'll fight!"

She then looked at Cabba. Her beautiful eyes made him nervous. _She was too similar to her._

"Well, well. You must be the Saiyan Cabba. Greetings."

"Oh. Hello." he said, awakening from his thoughts trying to remain composed, "Umm… can I help you with something?"

"I heard that you're the strongest among the Saiyans."

He took a look at Frost with his eyes wide open, who was looking at him with interest.

"You told her this, sire?"

"Why yes. You have surprised me for the last six months ever since the tree incident, I think it would be interesting to show your abilities to the gods, young Cabba."

Cabba took a moment to think about it, before declining the offer.

"Well, I personally think I'm not that special. Why don't we call Lord Sadala? Maybe they have a veteran with better techniques than me."

"It won't be necessary," Frost said bluntly. "I think you're capable enough. You personally defeated "the strongest Saiyan" already, did you not?"

Cabba took a moment to look at her again. She kept her serene expression all the time. Cabba didn't know if it was creepy because it reminded her of the witch, or it was an uncanny presence in general.

"I… would love to prove my growth to you, sire. However, I'm tired and my hands are damaged due to the battles with Manza, and would take me at least a month until I'm fully recovered."

Vados chuckled once again. She touched his hands with her staff, and the injuries were all gone in a second. Instead of relief, he felt panic and jumped to the wall like a cornered mouse before calming himself. Frost was worried but Vados didn't pay attention to it, as she was watching the orb of her staff carefully.

"I've seen what you have done. You Saiyan warriors are most impressive. Simply flawless… Well then. Would you like to participate in a tournament against a team of fighters from Universe 7? I hear they have Saiyans on their team as well. It could be the perfect way to test your skill. You know, get that simian blood cooking?"

Recovering his hands was amazing, but a familiar feeling. He had to be cautious with that woman. He would have to go with her just to make sure Frost was alright. Dying for your hero is the greatest of causes. Although the simian comment offended him.

But the news of Saiyans from other universe was intriguing, to say the least.

"Another universe? With Saiyans? "I… I'll be honored to!"

"Marvelous, truly marvelous," Vados said while spinning her staff. "By the way… "

"Yes?"

"Lord Champa personally asked me to gather five warriors for the tournament, which included at least a Saiyan on the list. He personally selected one warrior though, a famous fighter named Botamo. However, I had to desist him from including a doctor named Rota. So, excuse me for asking this Cabba, but can you recommend one fighter?"

"Me?"

"Why yes. Frost recommends you, can you recommend someone that could defeat any Saiyan?"

Cabba knew who to call. With Vados help, he and Frost returned to Planet Sadala to find a good old friend.

* * *

 **Here comes the Universe 6 saga rewrite, with the point-of-view of this version of Cabba. Hope you'll find it interesting! And don't worry, this special won't be as long as the fanfic.**

 **The dialogue between Frost, Cabba and Vados is taken straight from one of Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2' DLC side mission.**


	22. Epilogue: Truth, part 2

**The second part of the epilogue. Credits to Ekrolo for corrections and suggestions.**

* * *

 **Meaning of Truth - Tournament of Destroyers**

 **IV**

"Are you sure they asked for you?"

"Yes, sire."

Cabba vowed his head to the king in the throne room. He hasn't seen him in months, but was glad his obsession with water was gone. The king didn't look convinced.

"Hmph! A tournament between Saiyans from another universe. Sounds cheap, don't you think so?"

"I… don't know sire. I never heard anything like it."

"Well, you're not missin' anything, stories like those are a dime in a dozen. Every once in a while I hear the folk tales from some of the races we save, and they all have things in common, so much I memorized some of the recurring ideas in all of them. All of them are cool on paper, but void of meaning. A good ruler should learn everything, regardless! You never know when that knowledge will be useful."

Cabba remained quiet. The king looked at him, knowing the young lad was troubled about something.

"Speak. What is on your mind?"

"Your Highness! I… I was wondering! How's the medical case going for the affected by the attack?"

The king stood up from his throne and started to walk towards him. He created a sphere of energy, small as a tennis ball.

"You're asking for your family? Last I heard, while the affected have no signs of further deterioration in their body, they have trouble healing up. Touch this flame, boy. Don't be afraid and touch it."

Cabba touched the energy. It didn't hurt one bit, in fact it felt like a cold breeze.

"You see what that traitor has done. We can still fight, but the ones who survived became weakened by such horrible act. Except for you. Why was that?"

Cabba couldn't think of an answer, only of an idea.

"Maybe because that witch healed me, or maybe because of Mag… I mean, a Metal Man saved me before I was turned into one of those creatures."

"Hmph!" the king closed his fist and the flame was no more. "You still look troubled. Do you have another question?"

Cabba tried to gain the courage to say it, it took around two whole minutes so he can ask it.

"Sir, if I win and gain enough credits from the Destroyer, can I use that money to take captain Renso out of prison?"

The king saw him with a worried look.

"I could do that, but would he want that shame upon himself? His aunt is an infamous terrorist, even if he comes out, no one would treat him with respect."

"I… don't know."

"The only way for people to forget about it is by bringing to light an even greater controversy. Obtain that and the money, and maybe I can grant you that wish."

Cabba said nothing. How could he archive that?

"Regardless, don't let this secret out of our chamber. We can't let them know the king is no longer the warrior he was." the king then smirked. "If I could fight in that tournament for the Destroyer, I would. I'm intrigued by how powerful those warriors are."

"Yes, sire. I'll make sure to fight in your place."

"Whatever you do, don't let Frost down, boy. And don't anger the God of Destruction! Ever!"

"I'll try, sire."

The king got close to him and poked his chest repeatedly and violently.

"You won't try, you will obey my command!"

"Yes, sir!"

Cabba left the room and head for the entrance of the palace, where Frost and Magetta were waiting for him alongside the woman named Vados, and two more fighters she picked before the three of them. They were outside a giant transparent cube, with a view of the capital of Sadala still being rebuilt. Sadly the coliseum wasn't there, not even a wall was left, which made Cabba's stomach felt a sense of emptiness, feeling nostalgia for what was lost.

He hand-five Magetta and the steel giant returned the gesture. It hurt, luckily his hands weren't bleeding any more.

"Excuse me for making you wait." Cabba bowed his head," I informed Lord Sadala that I was chosen for this. He told me to not let you guys down."

"I don't see the big fuzz of telling him." Frost said," I could have personally."

"My lord, it was better if I did. I hadn't seen the king for months and wanted to tell him that the mission in Mayone was a success. Can't I see my family to tell them I'm alright?"

"We are in a hurry and can't let the God of Destruction waiting. We are ready to go, miss Vados."

She smiled and entered the cube, and the fighters followed her.

The cube was surprisingly fast. Seeing space without feeling the need to drive a space ship was interesting, with the planets and the sun offering a beautiful sight. He took a look again at the fighters that Vados brought along. The first was a giant yellow bear of smug attitude wearing only red boots and a tank top of the same color, he was almost as big as Magetta but didn't particularly look tough. He was Botamo. The other was an apathetic tall purple man with a weird head-shape holding a sinister aura. Cabba didn't have a clue who he was.

Something caught his attention: around a red planet, there were 6 gigantic orange spheres of the same size. He couldn't believe his sight.

"W-what is that?" Cabba asked.

"That, young Cabba, are the Super Dragon Balls," Vados said while landing the cube on the planet. There was a bubble containing countless treasures like gold and jewels just beside them. "This tournament is for one of the destroyers to win them, and the winner shall get a wish granted."

"A wish? Like, you could get anything from them?"

"Indeed. You could wish for the best body or unlimited respect or endless amounts of non-fattening food or to beat your sibling at everything. Well, those are my lord's wishes anyway!" Vados laughed, leaving Cabba confused if she was serious or just kidding.

Winning a wish for anything. Could he wish for Taura to have never found that pesky fruit? Or to find the cure for the victims of the attack? To revive the fallen? Its an interesting idea, but the destroyer would use them for his own need. He couldn't use them ever.

Suddenly, a noise.

"VADOS!"

Someone was flying outside the cube with an annoyed expression in his face, with his mouth dirty having leftovers of what appeared to be cake. He was a purple cat-person of a chubby appearance, the type that doesn't do any attempts to take care of his health. Like Vados, he didn't have any sort of energy coming from him.

"Vados! We ran out of food, make more appear!"

"Yes, lord Champa, I will in a moment." She said with a bored expression. Touching the ground of the cube with her staff, she summoned a red bubble that got the fighters outside and allowed Champa to enter in contact with them.

Cabba was shocked. He expected the God of Destruction to look as dignified or creepy as Vados, but he looked more like the kind of loser that would follow the most popular guy at school for approval. Well, he better keep quiet about it.

Champa cleaned his mouth of the food remains and greeted the team.

"Well, well! So this our team? Well, I don't care. You better show me what you got, you hear?!"

"I personally selected them following your indications, my lord," Vados said while moving the bubble to the treasures, putting them on the sight of everyone. "Victory should be secure."

"Fine, fine! Well then. As you can see, I've collected more than enough incentives for you to give your all. If the five of you win this contest for me, you can take all you want. Don't even ask what happens if you lose."

All those treasures… Cabba thought what he could do with that much. The capital would finish being rebuilt, and who knows, maybe he could buy a thing or two. What exactly? Renso would be out of prison.

 _Well,_ _I_ _better give it_ _my_ _all during the tournament._

They arrived at the stage, a really impressive place of flying platforms with one central stage in the middle on the ground with the Super Dragon Balls in the skies outside the dome. There were two portraits of the destroyers deities facing both sides of the stage, one of Champa and the other of his brother, a slender and grumpy looking purple cat person. The air was fresh and clean, he enjoyed every second of it.

There were people around, with a group of people that looked similar to Botamo. They must be his family and friends from his home planet. Cabba wished he could have brought his family along. Once they could walk around, Champa went directly to them and spoke with the most unique of the bunch, a small green humanoid.

Cabba then remembered.

"Frost, sire! That guy is of the same race as the coliseum announcer!"

"He is? Huh, didn't notice."

"Is that guy alright? Or was he among the victims?"

"He is alright. I spoke with Das after the incident. He is recovering and taking a long vacation, but I'm sure he will be disappointed that you forgot his name."

With nothing else to do, they sat waiting for their opponents to arrive — the whole thing lasted at least an hour, with Champa eating everything Vados gave him all the while complaining the food was tasteless or too healthy.

The first thing that came to his mind was to say something to his team. He already knew Frost and Magetta, so it would be pointless to talk with them. He saw Botamo, the big yellow bear behind him and greeted him with his hand.

"Greetings! I'm Cabba, let's both do our best!"

He smirked.

"Don't worry, I'm gonna take everyone myself kid!"

Well, he was proud of his strength. Confidence is good he guessed.

The man with the sinister aura was sitting just beside him but he didn't know what to say to him. He had his eyes closed while arm-folding.

"Ah... greetings! W-what is your name?"

The man didn't say anything. _Rude_ , Cabba thought. He kept looking at him for a minute, and he could hear a weird noise coming from him.

Was he snoring?

When they arrived, Cabba got his first look at the enemy team. To his surprise, there were two Saiyans there. He'd recognize that hair anywhere. Next to them was a Namekian as well, one a shade lighter than their universes. The strangest one of their group was... large man? Although, Cabba wasn't sure about that. His skin was pink and there was a tail coming out his head. Did his species exist in their universe too?

* * *

 **Originally there was gonna be more here, but the chapter was too crowded, so only this was published. The next part in a few days.**

 **Taura was drawn by my friend Dingo Lunar. You can see the artwork here:** /a/myQRkqE


	23. Epilogue: Truth, part 3

**Took me more than a few days.  
This is the part where I truly change many of the events of the original story, although keeping it the same. This part was influenced by Xenoverse 2 interpretation of the events.**

* * *

 **Epilogue, part 3**

 **The Meaning of Truth**

 **True nature**

 **V  
**

"Excuse me, but I want to know if you two are Saiyans."

The enemy team was surprised by his question, with the Saiyan wearing an orange gi looking at him puzzled by it. He looked similar to the comrade Vados turned into a pig, and Cabba would later know his name is Goku. The other one, who wore a gray armor with a certain resemblance to the Sadalan's outfit and was the smallest member of the team, held a cold expression at the question, however. His name is Vegeta.

"Oh? How did you know?" Goku asked.

"I see, so there are Saiyans in your universe as well?"

"Still are," Cabba replied smiling, "I should know because I am one."

The two were surprised by the statement, with Goku touching his shoulder and looking at his back with curiosity. Cabba felt really uncomfortable and took a step backward to be free from his hands.

"What are you doing?" Cabba said bluntly."Don't touch me."

"Oh, I'm sorry", Goku said with a weird look. Was personal space an alien concept in his universe? "But I wanted to know where is your tail. Did you cut it off?"

"My tail? What are you talking about?"

"To be frank, your clothes are familiar." Vegeta said with his hands of his chin, "I remember learning of the clothes we Saiyan wore before we joined Freeza's army"

"Freeza? Excuse me, but I have no idea who are you talking about. Is him a person or something?

After a brief moment where Vegeta was looking towards Frost's direction, he asked another question.

"Tell me, what is the name of your planet?"

"Planet Sadala, of course."

He started to yell in surprise, impressed the planet still existed, and Vegeta started to talk about planet Sadala in the cousin universe.

"Our birth-world was destroyed in a civil war a long time ago. Afterward, my ancestors invaded another planet and named it Vegeta after its ruler. I'm the fourth Vegeta."

Cabba felt shivers on his spine.

"You invaded it?! You mean you took it by force?"

"Yeah, so?" He said with indifference, like if this was completely normal for him, "Aren't you Saiyans warriors too?"

"Of course we are, but we aren't invaders! We are peace-makers hired to fight against those who hurt the innocent, like the space pirates!"

"Wow! They are nice people, is like the complete opposite of you Vegeta!" Goku said looking at Vegeta, who was annoyed.

They were interrupted by Vados. She wanted them to take an exam to test. The group but Vegeta left to the tables to prepare for it, with him stopping him to ask Cabba for something.

"If we have time, I like to hear more about your planet."

Something in Cabba's mind was tickling. That man told him he was a conqueror of planets, so he was just like the Space Pirates he fought against, so of course, he was a dangerous opponent. Like if he was reading his mind, Vegeta chuckled.

"Don't worry, we were conquerors in the past, but that's old history."

Feeling a small sense of relief, Cabba's returned the smile at him but was suspicious of that man intentions.

"Sure, I'll tell you more if you want to."

"But don't think I'm gonna go easy on you."

Thinking of the previous Saiyan he had to fight against, that had a tongue prepared for lies just to further her goal, Cabba could never be too careful.

"Oh yeah? Neither will I," Cabba said bluntly.

The test was a written exam with a series of specific questions to know if the fighters were sentient enough to participate in the tournament. Basic math and linguistic questions, but nothing on history about either universe. He couldn't help but wonder there was a small flaw on it. What if one of the best fighters in the universe was illiterate? Did Magetta even know how to write? He never saw him writing. Well, other than that trivial question there was something that got his attention: the sinister man from before woke up.

Cabba greeted him and tried to introduce himself, but the man remained quiet looking at him, giving him the cold shoulder. Those red eyes of him were truly scary and couldn't feel a lot of energy from him.

 _Rude_ , Cabba thought.

"Well gentlemen, when I make it sound, you can all start with this exam. The questions are simple enough to determine if you're capable of fighting. Ready?"

She then blew her whistle.

 _Something felt off._

Cabba looked around, but everything was normal. _How weird_. He could swear he felt something for a moment, like a chill on his spine. Vados appeared before him.

"Focus on your test."

"Oh! I'm sorry!"

Cabba started to write, but couldn't help but notice Vados took the paper of the sinister man, who was sleeping again. _That's strange, did he finish already so fast? The test started just a minute ago._

They all finished the test. Everyone approved except the strange pink man from the enemy opponent. Apparently, he turned the exam into a donut with his magic powers, ate it and then fell asleep.

 _Jeez, what is with this tournament and_ _people_ _falling sleep?_

Cabba approved his test with a 76, while Frost had a 100. Magetta was barely lucky with a 50, just enough to approve.

"Hey, don't worry my friend!" Cabba said, "We'll have a chance five to four, be happy!"

Magetta calmed himself down, and they all went with the destroyer and assistant to their corner. Champa and Vados discussed for a few moments between which of the fighters should go first, but at the end, the god of destruction arrived at a conclusion: He would select the fighters through Eeny, meeny, miny, moe. As embarrassing as it was, the choice was Botamo, Frost, Magetta, Cabba and the sinister man known as Hit for last.

The commentator (named Brad, an off-putting name) introduced a singer to the crowd, a small bird-like person. He started to sing the chorus of the universe.

"THE UNIVERSE IS VERY SPACIOUS!"

And done. The crowd from Universe 6' side clapped, while Universe 7's side looked confused. _Tough crowd, huh?_

"Watch me! I'm gonna defeat every single one of them!"

Botamo yelled as he jumped at the stage. His opponent was the Namekian from Universe 7, named Piccolo. He calmly took his cape and turban, with those clothes making holes in the ground.

"I'll make this quick." He said, before grinning.

The two bowed towards their opponent, and Champa sent an energy blast towards the gong atop the stage, and the announcer screamed with all of his strength for them to begin.

 **VI**

The fight started between both of them, with Botamo rushing down against his opponent. The two were evenly matched, but none of Piccolo' punches were doing anything against Botamo's jelly-like skin. His attacks were absorbed on Botamo's body, returning like if nothing happened.

The crowd from Universe 6 was applauding, rooting for their warrior.

"That's Botamo, one of the strongest champions we have in our side of the pond," Champa said pridefully while unfolding a fan with his face, gusting a cool breeze. He was sitting on the corner of the spacey chair with Vados beside him, while Cabba was in the middle of her and Frost. He couldn't say he was comfortable sitting with such an uncanny woman, but Hit sleeping at the other corner of the chair left him puzzled. " He has won 600 championships thanks to his special ability to send any attack to another dimension!"

"How did he even get such power?" Vados asked.

"I have no clue but I don't care! Go win-nie!"

"To return any attack towards his opponent..." Frost muttered, which no doubt Cabba heard, "reminds me of that annoying tiger. I forgot to ask the Galactic Patrol whatever they did with him."

"Whatever it is, he is behind bars sir," Cabba said, smiling. "Still, that Piccolo fellow is an odd one."

"You noticed too, do you?" Vados said to him, " he doesn't look like a regular Namekian. There is something weird on him."

"Frost sire, you fought against Lusk. What is the difference between him and Piccolo?"

"Well, the skin tone for once," Frost said bluntly, and nothing more as Champa was yelling at Botamo to win.

Piccolo was tired. None of his attacks or techniques were working, and Botamo was proudly showing off his arms to the public.

A bad choice. Piccolo flew towards Botamo and grabbed him by the arms, and with difficulty as the giant fighter was heavy and shooting at the green man through his ears, Piccolo took him off the stage.

The crowd was in shock, and booed at Piccolo who couldn't care less about their opinion.

"You have incredible power, yet your arrogance was your downfall, you fool!"

Everyone was shocked by such a disappointing ending. Champa, in fact, started to kick the platform like a little kid which caused it to tremble like a massive earthquake. Vados and Hit were indifferent while Cabba tried to not fall from his spot. Botamo arrived at the platform and started to cry behind them.

"You were gonna take everyone, no? Jackass!" Champa yelled at him.

"What was that Champa?" the other destroyer named Beerus screamed from his platform, "I couldn't hear you over losing so badly!"

"Shut up! Shut up you anorexic skeleton cat!"

Champa got up and went directly to Frost, who was preparing himself on his seat. Champa then started to poke repeatedly at his forehead.

"You're supposed to be the best fighter in hand to hand combat or some crap, right mister Emperor? You better put it your all against that Namekian, or else!"

Frost got up with an annoyed expression in his face, stretching his arms repeatedly. "Of course, Lord Champa. I won't do anything to embarrass you."

"Frost sire! You don't need luck, you're invincible!" Cabba said with complete optimism in his eyes. Frost grinned in response.

"We are 4 to 4 now, I guess is up to me to return the match to our favor."

Frost went to the arena and headed directly to Piccolo, offering his hand to the fighter from Universe 7. Piccolo reacted quite weirdly, as if he was paralyzed by something impossible happening, but then returned to his cold and serious demeanor and rejected the hand offering, returning to his spot in the arena. The announcer was about to yell for the two fighters to begin fighting, but something stopped them.

"STOP RIGHT THERE!" It was Champa again. "What is this crap-show Frost? I told you to put your all against him, why are you fighting with that lame form?"

Cabba couldn't help but think the same. He was capable of transforming into a powerful and menacing looking version of himself with the **Assault form** , why was he holding back with the public one?

"Transform right now, I don't give a damn about sportsmanship or saving energy, just win with your strongest form!"

Frost grinned, and started to clap quite vehemently with a cold expression in his eyes.

"Understood. If that is what you wish, lord Champa. I must warn you though mister Piccolo, my true form is a bit unstable. I even accidentally killed someone with it, that's why I make sure to never use it, so you better watch out during our battle."

Piccolo held his position. Despite his stoic demeanor, there was an expression of fear in his eyes, a familiar kind of fear. Frost started to scream with all of his strenght, and a burning flash of light surrounded the entire place, and where Frost was there was another form entirely. His form wasn't big like what Cabba knew from before, but just as small as just a minute ago lacking the horns and the bio-armor he was always known for. It was like he was naked, which was weird to think of.

Frost then looked at the audience.

"Is everyone alright? I sincerely hope I didn't hurt any of you."

The audience cheered for him, despite the new side of him they never knew. He then took another look at his opponent with an audacious grin.

"Feel the need to hold back, we aren't fighting for the kill."

"My apologies, but I wish to finish this as quickly as possible, I have a busy schedule," Frost said while stretching his arms once again. "You are an exceptional warrior. This will certainly be more than a mere test of might."

"You're unfamiliar with my fighting style." Piccolo finally spoke, and the distrustful personality didn't change one bit. "That's a serious mistake."

 **VII**

"Before we start our battle, I feel the need to ask you something, mister Piccolo. Are you afraid of me?"

Piccolo held his position, with his energy emitting an aura around himself, preparing to fight. He was certainly shaking despite the cold attitude, possibly tired for his match against Botamo and his dimensional wall of a skin. Was he charging the attack in a specific area of his body? He had to be sure about it.

"You look at me like we met before, and I can assure you I met someone like you before. He was a monster, an evil-doer that rampaged through the lands for his demonic clan."

"What a coincidence," Piccolo said. "In my side of the pond, the one like you was the biggest monster anyone could have ever know."

"What an interesting contrast. Let's see if I can be as dangerous as him for this match, no hard feelings." Frost then winked. "I'm just playing the bad guy for this show, as the kids in the audience would like to root for the underdog here."

The commentator screamed for the fight to begin.

Frost jumped in Piccolo's direction to attack with his elbow, but he quickly dissipated. He was above the arena, flying and focusing all of his energy on his hand. He shoot some energy beams with his fingers but Piccolo quickly dodged them bar one in his knee. It was a very basic strategy, he would focus all of his strength in that point and then shoot it as a piercing energy blast. However, there was a glaring weakness.

"Astounding, but how much do you need to charge for that attack?"

"Don't worry, I'm not leaving you alone!" Piccolo yelled.

Pah! He was punched from the back of his neck by an invincible force. When he came to, he discovered how there were multiple versions of Piccolo in the arena, some holding his hand like the original while the others were completely free. He was struck fighting the clones while the original.

"Hey, referee! That's cheating! Multiple opponents against one is not fair! Give him a yellow card or disqualify him" Champa yelled from his seat.

"This is a battle tactic and is not against the rules!" The referee yelled through the microphone.

"A lowly referee dares to defy a God of Destruction?! I'll make sure you won't ever..." Champa kept yelling with his nasal voice.

"Shut up! When it comes to tournaments, a referee is above any form of god!" the other god yelled at his brother, which was enough to shut him up for now.

Frost struggled for a few moments with the doppelgangers, but for his level of power, they weren't anything difficult. Knowing their existence was but a mirror image, Frost went all out and used his deadly tactics. He touched the forehead of the clones while his hands had enough energy, making them disappear in an instant like if they exploded. Frost then released a lot of stored energy to create an explosion enough to make the clones disappear in an instant. There was but one Namekian in the ring again, but the moment he was about to attack, he was trapped by his extendable arm from an unknown place.

"What is...?"

The real Piccolo was holding him down with his left arm while the right was prepared to shoot him down.

"You forgot we can extend our limbs, huh? I have the energy to beat you now!"

"And what will you do? Pierce my body up? I thought we weren't going for the kill."

"Someone of your kind will not die with this, I know that very well. Now prepare yourself."

And the match appeared to be decided for Universe 7's victory once more. In the seats the audience was in disbelief their beloved emperor could lose a fight, and Frost couldn't betray their expectations. They needed him, after all, every single of them. He couldn't lose.

Piccolo was about to shoot... but something was up. Piccolo stopped holding Frost down and started to act quite dizzy. In a flash, Frost took the opportunity and punched him with enough strength to throw him off the arena.

The audience cheered. "Hahaha! That's it! Keep it up, Frost ma' boy!" Champa screamed ecstatic from his seat.

As the referee made sure to confirm Piccolo's defeat, Frost headed to his fallen opponent. He was returning to his senses, and Frost gave his hand to him.

"W-what happened?"

"Honestly I'm not quite sure. You possibly used so much energy your brain had a small skip in the thought process. Sometimes it happens to the best of us."

With no other option but to accept his hand, he got up with his help. Frost then raised Piccolo's arm so the audience cheered him up too, for a geniunely fun fight.

"I must admit," Piccolo started to say while looking at the crowd, "I thought you were like that guy, but I never sensed an evil aura inside you."

"This is but a show, I just play the bad guy."

Then, someone from Universe 7's yelled. "OBJECTION! Frost is cheating!"

A small alien wearing clothes similar to the Galactic Patrol was the culprit. The audience booed at him, telling him to stop being such a sore loser. But the God of Destruction also said something about it.

"Referee! Confirm what this guy is saying! If he is lying, I'll make sure to destroy him myself!"

And with no other option despite Champa's protests, the referee started to inspect Frost's body. When he touched his arm, he got dizzy and fell to the ground. When he got up, he could confirm it: Frost was cheating.

"You must be confused, this is nothing but an extension of my body."

"No, all evidence suggests this is not. You are cheating! Frost is disqualified, Piccolo wins!"

The audience remained silent this time. They couldn't understand what was going on.

"Tsk, I guess this is the end," Frost said while walking away from his opponent, with slight indifference.

"But... but why would you feel the need to cheat?" Cabba asked from his seat.

Vados laughed in her elegant manner. "That's just Frost's true nature, he was secretly the leader of the Space Pirates all along."

* * *

 **Special credits to King Ryu and Toshio Yoshitaka, the writers of the Universe 6 saga of Dragon Ball Super. I felt their ideas were more interesting than Toyotaro's treatment of the characters of universe 6, in fact, my interpretations are closer to theirs even with the few nods I give to the manga of Dragon Ball Super.**


	24. Epilogue: Truth, part 4

**Another part of the original tournament that got changed, but this time is more in line with what I wrote for the entire fanfic. I hope you enjoy it.**

 **Severe thanks to Ekrolo for helping me write this chapter.**

 **Epilogue**

 **part 4**

 **Reality is cruel - The skin of a giant**

 **VIII**

"You gotta be kidding me! What kinda sick joke is this?!"

The God of Destruction was screaming with all of his might. Cabba tried to hold his composure, but he wanted to scream too. Instead, he just shook, staring at Vados to see when she'd admit it really was just a joke. When she didn't and kept looking so smug, he couldn't help but call her out.

"You're lying. Frost... Frost is not a coward!"

Vados just smiled wider. "I have no reason to lie at all. The pirates that attacked Planet Mayonnai were part of an underground syndicate under his control, and he then sold himself as the savior. He is but a mask."

"You _are_ lying, you... you... sow!" Cabba yelled, hoping his embarrassed blush wasn't too obvious. He'd never called someone that. Come to think of it, he wasn't even sure where he'd heard it before. Vados didn't seem to mind it but Lord Champa did, giving him a mean look.

"Hohoho..." Frost's laugh suddenly echoed through the referee's microphone. "That's quite a heartless thing to say, miss Vados. But alright, I am the bad guy. You can point your fingers at me and say it, "he's evil". I don't have that problem since from my point of view I'm just doing the universe a service. I start the wars and resolve them myself, then I buy the war-ravaged lands at a low price before restoring those planets to a huge profit. The entire universe benefited from my business scheme, and civilizations can thank their huge advancements thanks to me. So tell me, am I really evil?"

There was a deep silence, with only a few people speaking to themselves. The most noise came from Universe 7's seats, who started to jeer at the emperor, comparing him to that Freeza fellow Vegeta mentioned.

"Sneaky bastard!" Piccolo shouted, shaking an angry fist at Frost. "Playing us all for fools!"

"I prefer the term "pragmatic", thank you so much." Frost then grinned a little at him, "But I'm sure you have your own skeletons in the closet, we all do."

"Vados!" How the hell could you have picked that creep to be on my team?! You' made me look bad! What is wrong with you?!"

"Lord Champa, I was simply following your command," Vados said without a care in the world. "You told me to get the best fighters to win, never to consider their morality. "I just want to win this thing, find the best fighters Vados, quickly" were your exact words." Vados imitated the nasal tone of his voice for that last part.

Champa was speechless, looking like he wanted to blow everything but mainly Vados and Frost up. Cabba half wished he did. Everything he ever knew, ever believed the reason he was even in the arena between Gods of Destruction was from a fraud, a horrible criminal.

Frost was his hero, his idol. Everything Cabba is, was from following his example. All of a sudden he felt really sick like he was going to throw up. The feeling only got worse when he spotted Frost casually walking back towards the bench…

That was when Lord Champa's hand started glowing, pointed right at Frost.

"You think you can bring this shame upon me, you bastard? I'll destroy you right here for making me look bad!"

"Hold on!" The voice came from Universe 7's seat. It was Vegeta. "You don't need to disqualify him. I'll punish the bastard once Piccolo retires in the next match."

"Hold on you, who gave you the permission to play with the rules of this damn tournament?" Champa yelled. "Besides, I called dibs on erasing this cheater myself!"

"Don't be so hasty, lord Champa, this is a great opportunity for us," Vados said, still calm as ever. "With his conditions, we would be winning 4 to 3 now. It would suit your plan for victory against Lord Beerus."

Lord Champa seemed to cool off a bit, rubbing his chin at the idea. Cabba didn't know what to think. The idea of seeing Frost beaten was tempting but what if he won? What if he got away with it all?! His fear of that didn't get any better when Lord Champa lowered his hand.

"Frost!" He shouted. "Keep fighting, and if you win, I'll agree with your side of the bargain!"

"Wait a second!" Universe 7s God of Destruction suddenly stepped in, looking ticked off. "I never agreed to this mucking around with the rules!"

"Ha! What's the matter, Beerus?!" Lord Champa shouted across the arena, smiling proudly. "Afraid my guy's gonna smash through what's left of your team?!"

"…. Vegeta!" He suddenly shouted at the Saiyan. "You better not screw this up, understood?!"

"He won't even see me coming." Vegeta jumped down next to Piccolo. "Sorry about butting in but something about that guy's really ticking me off."

"Hm, I wonder what that could be," The U7 Namekian left for his sides bench.

"Are you sure you want to fight me?" Frost asked, looking pleased with himself. "I'm sure the referee won't care if I keep using my tactics against you, Vegeta, was it? Maybe I'll kill you by accident."

Vegeta just smiled. If Frost found that strange or threatening, Cabba couldn't see it. The referee looked between them, raising his hand into the air.

"Ready? FIGHT!"

But it wasn't even a fight. In the blink of an eye, Vegeta punched Frost with enough force to sent him flying off the arena with enough force to break the roof! Vados' staff glowed and fixed it while Frost simply fell out of bounds. Cabba blinked a few times, wondering what just happened and what that yellow glow from Vegeta was. His hair was blonde and his eyes were green. The power rushing out of him was unlike anything he'd ever felt from another Saiyan!

"Don't worry!" Vegeta yelled to the referee who rushed to Frost's side. "I'm not going to fall to the same level as that piece of trash."

The victory was given to Vegeta,

Cabba awakened from his trance the moment Frost was taken out, and he was puzzled at what he was seeing. Vegeta's appearance was unusual for a Saiyan, as his hair wasn't black, but a shining gold color, his eyes green with an intense glare, and the power surrounding him was overwhelming, something Cabba never felt before.

"I can't believe it Frost could ever lose!" Botamo said.

"Hey you runt, what is that supposed to be?" Champa yelled at him. Cabba didn't know what to reply. "You didn't tell me Saiyans were able to transform!"

"They... they aren't supposed to." He said, wondering if this was maybe their version of the Tree of Might's power. It didn't feel like a group of screaming people crying out. Maybe their universe had a benign version?

While he wondered about this, Botamo put Frost in the seat next to him. Cabba was glad to the large fighter was between them, he couldn't even bring himself up to look at his former hero. Especially once he woke up.

"I could destroy you right here and now, you sniveling worm..." Lord Champa threatened.

"You should punish him later, my Lord," Vados said while not moving a muscle in her seat, "you don't want your cholesterol getting too high."

She looked to the person seated farthest right and Cabba followed her. To his surprise, Hit was awake! Looking down at Vegeta but only briefly. Soon he was back to napping. That only made Cabba even more curious about what Vegeta's power was.

"It seems your friend is going next, young Cabba," Vados pointed out as Frost's portrait dimmed while Magetta's glowed. "Let's hope he lives up to your suggestion."

Cabba gulped, especially when he noticed Lord Champa's side ways glance. He looked at Auta Magetta, who was drinking lava in the corner, minding his own business. The small rush of fear vanished immediately. In his heart, he trusted Magetta more than anything. Not for nothing, the steel giant was able to strike a blow to Taura, and despite her unnatural power thanks to that mighty fruit of evil, becoming the strongest Saiyan alive, she was still enough of a coward to teleport him outside her range to complete her plans.

"I know he will!"

"Good!" Lord Champa said, leaning back in his chair. "I don't want more disappointments! I hired you to win and you lot better start doing it. Or else."

"I..."

"Nobody cares, kid. You, metal man! Get over there and win this fight!"

"Be careful of your words sir, Metal Men are quite sensitive," Vados said preparing her staff.

Cabba snapped. He completely forgot of Magetta weakness against strong words against him. Would they allow the Metal Man to have rocks over his ears like the Coliseum games? Cabba thought for a second nervously, but couldn't see that happening. Champa would agree, he wanted to win, but Beerus wouldn't allow it, meaning Magetta was at the mercy of that Saiyan, and as Frost showed, he had a bad temper.

"Miss Vados! There is a problem with Magetta!"

"What now?!" Champa yelled, "and you should speak with me, you brat! Me! I'm the boss here!"

"U-understood Lord Champa!" Cabba did a salute purely out of instinct and got close to them to make sure Universe 7's bench didn't hear them, "Back in Sadala, Magetta fought protecting his earpieces to fight at maximum capacity. If any Saiyan destroyed those, it would be disqualified. Do you think we can apply those rules here?"

"Huh?! What for?" Lord Champa asked, looking confused an irritated.

"Because they're sensitive sir like I just said they were."

"Don't sass me, Vados! Just tell me can we do it or not?!"

"Probably not, Beerus looked fairly upset with this Frost business. I'd rather not push him anymore, lest we derail the whole tournament."

Champa, looking mad looked ready to say something about that but stopped himself. Then, for some reason, started grinning from ear to ear.

"If we can't do that, then we'll give ourselves another edge! Metal men drink lots of lava right, kid?"

"Uh, yes sir!"

"And they gotta let it loose right?"

"Yes, they do! In fact, most species tend to leave when they do that. The temperatures around them rise to lethal heights!"

"That's exactly what I'm counting on, kid!"

Vados giggled at that. "Well, well, Lord Champa. I am impressed, you're usually nowhere near this cunning."

"Oh, I kno-" His smile died in an instant. "Shut up Vados! Just do the thing!"

"Right away, my lord."

So the plan was set in motion. Magetta walked directly to the arena, leaving holes on the ground, and let the giant cup of lava fall. The referee tried to carry it out and immediately stopped when he noticed how hot it was. Vegeta wasn't impressed by the looks of him. When he prepared to fight, a quadrangular containment field made of glass was summoned atop the arena with Vados's magic.

This didn't please Beerus, who went flying rapidly atop it.

"What the hell is this crap?!" Beerus flew atop it. "Champa, what are you plotting?!"

Lord Champa didn't felt the need to stand from his seat and smugly smiled in his direction.

"Why, I'm not plotting anything. I'm making sure the audience doesn't suffer damage, and because our combatant can't fly it wouldn't be fair if yours simply flew in the sky like a mosquito on someone's eye. "

Beerus started to yell more things, but his assistant, a pale blue effeminate guy who resembled Vados with outlandish hair, stopped him and calmed him down. He returned to his spot. Cabba sat on the border of the bench alongside Botamo, to stay as far away as possible from Frost, and make sure he could see more of Vegeta's weird transformation and how well it went against Magetta.

"Come on Magetta! You're the strongest shield, no one can pierce you!"

Hearing him, Magetta released a lot of steam towards the arena.

"Fight!"

The fight went as planned, with Vegeta still looking bored by all this. He kept his arms folded while evading punches. Magetta's punches were strong, and would possibly break the bones of that guy even with that weird transformation of his, but he was immensely slow.

"He is not even hittin' him," Botamo said.

"Just watch!"

Vegeta directly punched his body, and his poker face dropped in a shout of sheer pain with intense agony.

"That guy probably broke his hand!" Botamo yelled, which Cabba hoped. Not wasting his opportunity, Magetta punched him right in the head, leaving him wounded on the ground. Mageta raised his feet ready to crush him, which made Lord Champa snap!.

"Don't kill em you, idiot!

Vegeta was fast though and evaded it. Just like Caulifla before, Vegeta started to shoot aimlessly at Magetta trying to damage him to no effect. It only made Magetta furious, releasing steam everywhere and heating the environment. The steam clouded the place, with only the steel giant be visible.

For a second, Cabba stopped thinking about the match. Even with that transformation, that guy wasn't a match for a Metal Man. He instead returned to think of himself, confused about what to even imagine doing now. He took a look at the seats, and Frost was no longer there. He wondered where he was, realizing that Hit and Vados were suddenly gone too!

Where could they be?

"Hey, he is touching the glass!"

Cabba looked back to the arena. Very quickly he saw how there was an inferno inside there, with Vegeta flying atop the arena exhausted and barely breathing. Botamo was wrong though, he was nearly touching it, preparing an attack with both of his arms.

"You cocky bastard, FINAL FLASH!"

And an intense wave of energy was sent to Magetta, but the steel giant replied to the attack by sending an absurd spit of lava from his mouth. Since it was saliva, it was safe. Cabba was excited, barely keeping it in-check as Magetta could win the fight. Even with the lava not amounting to much, Magetta was still holding against the Final Flash, barely moving.

The energy of the flash made the entire place crumble, and the glass container broke, making tons of shards fly all over the place!

Cabba held his arms to protect the seats out of instinct and didn't even know if he was protecting someone. He looked behind and saw Vados, unfazed. An unconscious Frost got a shard entrusted in him, while Hit held a piece of glass like nothing, not even feeling the need to open his eyes.

 _Wow_ , Cabba thought.

"Thank you," Vados said. "It was unnecessary, but I appreciate the gesture."

"Blast!" Champa yelled, "My brilliant field was destroyed! He should be disqualified for this!"

The clash between Vegeta and Magetta kept going. It was soon to be over, just a little more and Vegeta would lose out of exhaustion!

"You can do it, keep holding on!" Cabba, Botamo, and Champa yelled excited.

However, he couldn't. In frustration, Vegeta insulted him.

"Worthless hunk of scrap! Stop pissing me off and lose already!"

So he did. Magetta left himself completely open to the Final Flash blasting him right through the arena out of bounds. Magetta fell, although the arena was in complete shambles until Beerus's assistant repaired it afterward.

Cabba sighed, feeling bad for his friend. Just when he was so close to winning too!

"Awwww come on!" Lord Champa shrieked, rolling on the floor like a spoiled brat. "This is all wrong! How're we losing!"

Vados giggled, waving Magetta over to the benches. She even offered him a handkerchief. Cabba went over to him, giving his friend a comforting pat on the shoulder.

"Don't cry, you did very well!"

From the other side of the arena, cheers were being thrown at Vegeta who'd been handed a large jug of water. Magetta's portrait dimmed, Cabba's glowed. He realized it'd be his turn to see what this transformation was first hand.

* * *

 **I'm not gonna lie, I had fun writing this part. The fight against Magetta was shorter than the anime version and other than a few nods to the manga, I mostly based this chapter in the anime incarnation, as I felt Vegeta defeating the steel giant in the manga was a bit anticlimactic.**

 **Again, a huge thank to Ekrolo. He helped me with a lot of details, but most importantly helping me write both Champa and Vados. Hope I can get the next chapter soon, as the rewrite is soon to be over. I'll talk a bit about Frost and Cabba characterization in the final chapter.**


	25. Epilogue: Truth, part 5

**The most awaited chapter!**

* * *

 **Epilogue**

 **Part 5**

 **Super Saiyan**

 **IX**

"Listen well you brat! You're a Saiyan just like him, you have a chance. You better not disappoint me or you will see my ugly side!"

"U-understood, lord Champa."

Cabba went to the arena where his opponent, the Saiyan from the twin universe, was waiting. Only thirty minutes had passed since he arrived to the tournament between the two universes, yet enough happened to shake everything he ever believed in. That guy named Vegeta defeated his hero (or, the faker at this point) and the friend he thought was invincible lost. To say it was all too much for him would be an understatement. Still, Renso was counting on him and he wouldn't let his shaken demeanor stop him now!

Cabba inclined his head towards his opponent, trying to remain composed.

"Happy to be your acquaintance."

Vegeta chuckled. He had his arms folded, and unlike the previous matches didn't feel the need to transform.

"Well, what a coincidence," Vegeta said nonchalantly, "two Saiyans to fight each other. You better not disappoint me."

Cabba took his battle position. He was nervous with the position of the legs for a second, but he then got the pose just right. Vegeta looked amused, not even changing his position.

"Oh? That position huh? You have it too?"

The destroyer deity hit the gong with a blast, and the announcer screamed for the fight to begin. Wasting no time, Cabba rushed towards his opponent, even dashing at max speed towards his back for a safe hit. Vegeta reacted accordingly, defending himself from the hit, but Cabba didn't give up, jumping towards the ground and then returning to kick him in the back of his knees.

He kept dashing, kicking him in his belly and putting a good amount of Ki in it to make it extra slasher, and taking the opportunity Vegeta was reacting Cabba flew to the skies where the sun was. Blinded by the sunlight, Vegeta couldn't see how Cabba was preparing a high kick jump, kicking him straight into the head.

Vegeta yelled in pain, and he could see blood coming from his face. Cabba was hoping that Magetta's punch was enough to break his skull, but he had to be contempt with merely wounding him. That guy had a thick skull. Regardless, Cabba kept jumping and started to charge his Garlick Buster.

"Take THIS!"

A powerful and immense wave of purple energy came from his hands. Cabba proudly could say it was the strongest one he ever created, enough to destroy a meteor.

But the man reacted accordingly, with his Garlick Buster clashing with another energy wave from Vegeta's hands. _Was it? No, it couldn't_ , were Cabba's thoughts. Vegeta was doing the Garlick Buster.

"Not bad!" Vegeta said, grinning, "you too know this technique? I could say we are evenly matched!"

Cabba tried to keep pushing the blast, but Vegeta was too strong. His hands were burning, if he kept pushing he would suffer a serious injury in his wrists. Cabba had no choice, but he had to jump away from the blast to avoid it.

He wasn't hit, but he was severely tired from such a maneuver, trying to take a breath. Despite everything, Vegeta wasn't even tired. He was smiling confidently like nothing. Cabba couldn't read him. What was he plotting?

"I said we are evenly matched, but maybe I'm exaggerating. You are decent enough for my natural state, meaning you're quite accustomed for battle. You do your race proud."

"N-natural state?"

"Of course. What are you waiting for? I told you to not disappoint me, so go on and transform into a Super Saiyan already!"

Cabba had a brief pause before knowing what to say.

"Super Saiyan... that's the name of that transformation you did earlier?"

Vegeta stopped smiling. Now he had a serious expression in his face, filled with disappointment.

"Don't tell me you can't transform into it."

"No, I can't. I never heard of a Saiyan transforming before, this is new to me. I..."

Cabba kept quiet. That man defeated Frost with a single punch, and could fight a Metal Man without serious injuries. He was unbelievable, and the way he says it... Cabba knew it was a natural state, it wasn't something like the Tree of Might. The demonic ki and this golden ki were completely different, like water and oil. He needed to know, but he couldn't reveal him about the incident in order of the king.

 _Don't let this secret out of the chamber._

 _The only way for people to forget about it is by bringing an even greater controversy._

The king words echoed through his head. With Frost secret out, he could obtain Renso's freedom... but could he defeat Frost himself? Frost is the emperor of the Space Pirates, there was nothing stopping him from starting a war with his forces the moment the tournament ends. He knew for a fact Frost was still stronger than him.

He had to ask him. Remembering how Vegeta said he was a royal member of his homeworld, Cabba bowed his head.

"I beg you... Veg.. Vegeta sir, please teach me how to transform as you do!"

Vegeta remained quiet, but he closed his eyes, deep in thought.

"On behalf of my family waiting for me back on Planet Sadala, I want to become stronger so I bring **true peace** to our universe."

"Kid..." Vegeta eye was twitching. "We are in the middle of a tournament here."

"I beg you!" Cabba insisted. He had to know the secret of the Super Saiyan, no matter what. "I need **more power**."

The air pressure changed, and Vegeta started to shine. He was absolutely livid.

"Asking for a lesson in the middle of battle... **you call yourself a Saiyan?!** "

He then released a powerful scream as he once again took on the golden transformation. Cabba heart was beating by second as he tried to react, but it was too late as Vegeta punched him in the stomach. The pain was unbearable, he could feel how his insides were breaking apart with just that one punch.

He was in the ground trying to breathe. Vegeta yelled at him again.

"You're nothing but a failure!"

Those words again. Cabba felt like if he was being stabbed as he kept getting kicked.

"Stand up! I'm not done with you!"

 _You're nothing._

Vegeta kicked him in the back, making Cabba literally kiss the floor. He was having trouble breathing, and with the hit, he was sure he broke a tooth or two. He couldn't get up, with an injury in his forehead blinding him.

 _You're nothing._

Vegeta kept kicking him repeatedly. Every hit was enough to break a different bone, it was like an elephant crushing a pup with its size, and Cabba could do nothing but scream of the unbearable pain.

 _Please, help me! Help me, someone!_ Were Cabba thoughts, he was so terrified he didn't even know who to ask for help.

 _You're nothing._

"If this is the best the Saiyan race from your universe can offer," Vegeta then stepped on his face, making sure to crush him like a cockroach, "then I can't even believe what a bunch of weaklings they are!"

Cabba could feel his injuries in his skull worsening. He didn't even know if he could talk by that point.

"How did you even survived until now? With just luck?"

"I... I... giv..."

Vegeta was angrier now. He grabbed him by the shirt, and saw him with his intense green eyes to the face, real close.

"Listen now, runt. You're a member of the Saiyan race, if you ever even surrender, I'll kill you right here and now!"

He wasn't lying. This guy was a known executioner, just like her. Cabba knew his kind, he knew they won't stop until seeing their enemies dead with their blood on their hands. It was all but a game to them, like a tiger with its prey. He couldn't breathe, he was gonna die with a severe back injury by a psychopath from another universe.

"HELP ME!" Cabba yelled with everything he had. The audience even screamed to the referee to do something, but the referee was terrified to do so.

"Hmph! So be it. I'll put you out of your misery right here and now, and when I'm done, I'll destroy that planet and kill your family personally! One by one!"

Vegeta then launched him to the skies, as he started to launch a powerful beam of energy from his entire being at Cabba. He was going for the kill.

Cabba was terrified.

 _You're nothing._

Cabba felt worthless.

 _You're nothing._

Cabba was tired of hearing that annoying female voice in his head.

 _You're nothing._

And most importantly, Cabba was angry at his own weakness.

 _You're nothing._

"SHUT THE HELL UP! SHUT UP!"

Cabba exploded. In quick succession, an energy shield appeared surrounding him and Vegeta's blast evaporated. It was a sickly green color that quickly turned golden, but Cabba didn't even notice. He only saw one thing: that monster in front of him, aiming to harm his family.

"Who the hell you think you are?! You bastard!"

Cabba flew towards Vegeta and attacked with everything he had towards him, rambling about his family and homeworld. Every punch, every kick, it was aiming for the kill. He never felt so much anger in his life, Cabba couldn't even understand it. It was years of bottled anger waiting to be released, born out of trauma. The heat in the arena increased, it was like Magetta's inferno, and yet Vegeta was holding all of Cabba's attacks, with some difficulty, but losing ground ready to fall off the arena.

Vegeta broke free of the attacks and kicked Cabba in the legs to make him lose balance, yet in a flash Cabba kicked him while holding on with his arms on the ground. Vegeta was sent to the sky with those kicks, and he tried to see where Cabba was but was too late as he used the sun against him again. Cabba kicked him in the stomach repeatedly until he reached the ground.

Cabba jumped away from him, charging his next attack. Just like he killed Taura, he was going to charge an attack on his left hand, and break the skull of the bastard. Was he even seeing who his enemy was? Was it Vegeta, Taura or was it Frost?

 _No matter_ , Cabba thought. With difficulty, Vegeta stood up. But he wasn't growling in pain.

With his strongest punch ever, Cabba punched him in the forehead, which made the ground and air tremble.

"That's it."

Vegeta was smiling. Cabba was recovering his sight, recovering control. He was confused.

"You felt that sensation? Don't ever forget it."

Not knowing what happened, Cabba depowered. While he could stand, the pain in his vertical column returned once again. Yet, Vegeta words made him ignore it.

"Pure anger is the trigger for the Super Saiyan transformation. Never forget that sensation."

It took him a second, but Cabba understood. "Yes, sir!"

"Try it again, brat."

Cabba didn't know if he should do it, as he barely controlled himself. If Vegeta was weaker, he could have seriously killed another person, another member of his race...

"QUICKLY, IM LOSING MY PATIENCE!"

"Y-yes, sir!"

Remembering that feeling of anger, Cabba concentrated everything in order to transform, awakening once again the golden transformation of Super Saiyan. It was an amazing sensation, and in an ironic twist, he felt his back losing part of the pain. Was the source of the power there?

"I see you have some potential in you."

"D-did you... did you do all those horrible things to me just to make me angry enough to transform?" Cabba said.

Vegeta did like he didn't pay attention to his question. His form changed again, turning his hair, eyes and ki blue. Something was strange about it, Cabba couldn't sense it at all, not like he normally felt power. It was like a pressure in the air... in a word, an alien feeling he only felt with Lord Champa and Vados.

"B-blue?"

"The most powerful, Super Saiyan Blue."

Cabba just repeated the name. He was frozen, looking at the form. There was something odd about it, a feeling he couldn't comprehend, filled with intense curiosity. Just who was this guy?

"If you keep on training, you may obtain this state."

"I... I can?"

But once again, Vegeta punched him in the stomach, and Cabba couldn't keep fighting any longer. Before falling unconscious, he could hear Vegeta saying one final lesson.

"This pain, don't you ever forget it."

Cabba passed out.

Cold water woke him up, and Vegeta was once again in front of him. He didn't need to see his portrait to know he lost. His vertical column still hurt like hell, and couldn't get up no matter how much he tried.

Vegeta extended his hand, and with no other choice, Cabba accepted it. He got up, but couldn't feel like walking or flying.

"Look in your hand."

Cabba looked, and noticed a small green bean. He looked at Vegeta and wondered what even was it, but he merely saw him with his fierce stoic expression. Without questioning more, he ate it. In a snap, he recovered his health. He looked at himself, and even touched his back and didn't feel any pain. It was as if the fight never happened. In fact, he even checked his teeth and it appeared he wasn't bleeding any more.

"T-thank you!" Cabba bowed with his entire body this time. Vegeta touched the floor of the arena with the jar, which made Cabba snap. Vegeta looked like he was kneeling.

"There was a moment in the middle of combat where you actually said you gave up. Surrender is an outcome far worse than defeat. I won't tolerate a Saiyan showing such behavior!"

Cabba didn't reply. At this point, what is he supposed to say?

"Never forget what you are! Where the hell is your Saiyan pride?"

"My pride?"

"Your strength."

Considering everything that happened in the last year, Cabba was still doubtful about the claim. Yet, he obtained a transformation thanks to that man, and what's better, he never needed a fruit or the magic of a witch. It was his own talent. This gave him the resolve to reply.

"I'll understand. I'll do my best and become just as strong as you!"

Vegeta touched the floor with the jar again. He didn't like that?"

"Fool, become stronger than me!"

Cabba smiled, and was on the verge of tears. It took him a moment just to find the right words.

"I-I will!"

Vegeta grinned, and slowly walked away.

"Not that I will ever let you surpass me."

What arrogance, yet that's what Cabba needed to hear. Living his life in a lie, gaining a new purpose with a power he never knew he had was everything he ever needed. He didn't know how to thank that man, except by fulfilling that lesson. That tough lesson taught by pain is one he will never forget.

"The king... is a man as proud and strong as you are!" Cabba said. He felt like if he was speaking through the king as an emissary. Vegeta didn't turn his back to see him.

"Is that so? You have to make me meet him later."

Cabba flew back to the bench. Champa was absolutely livid on his seat, while Vados was using the fan from earlier on him, like if he was on fire. Frost was still unconscious. The most impressive sight was Hit standing up, a bit.

"I'm surrounded by incompetents... Incompetents I tell ya all! We only have one participant left, and Beerus still has three! I should des..."

"Calm down, my lord, or you'll get a stomach ulc-"

"Don't tell everyone about my ulcer, you idiot!" Champa shouted as loud as he could, looking furious until Beerus laughed behind him. There was sniggering across the whole universe 7 bench too and from Vados herself. Mortified, Champa crossed his eyes, refusing to look at anyone. "J-Just get one with it…"

Hit walked over the bench and jumped on the arena, with a perfect landing. His portrait was on, and Cabba couldn't help but notice something. He sat once again on the border alongside Botamo. He was surprisingly talkative, much more than Magetta.

"Tell me, do you know anything about Hit?"

"I don't know much myself," Botamo said. "Although, I did hear' from Vados that Hit is infamous in the underworld."

"Is he a space pirate?"

"No. He is a hitman."

"Do you think his head looks like a weenie?" Cabba said.

"Totally, but keep your mouth shut," Botamo replied with a shush.

The referee announced the fight to start, and Vegeta was using Super Saiyan Blue, clearly to finish everything quickly. When everyone noticed, Vegeta was down on the floor very far. Vegeta got back up time and time again, but every time he was down, and what's weird is that Hit didn't even move. Everyone in the audience was shocked, and Champa started to show a more happy mood.

"What is that guy doing? He is defeating that Blue form easily," Cabba said, but Botamo didn't reply. In fact, other than Champa everyone was quiet paying attention to the match, trying to figure out what was happening.

Vegeta tried to launch an energy attack from a safe distance, but that didn't work either, with Hit appearing in a flash before him, with his fist right in Vegeta's chest.

Before anybody knew, Vegeta was down on the floor with Hit looking down on him. Was Vegeta dead? No, he couldn't be. But to see such a transformation defeated by someone from his team made Cabba quite shocked.

* * *

 **While I vastly prefer the anime version (episode 37, to be exact) of Cabba versus Vegeta in terms of scripting and characterization, I was rewatching and felt it was very underwhelming visually, with Cabba looking getting tired very quickly while barely fighting his opponent. For this rewrite, I took chapter 12 of the manga for reference where Cabba does make comparatively difficult maneuvers that would tire someone quickly, and because the visuals are very good.**

 **The fight as Super Saiyans is an exaggeration of the anime, as I portrayed Cabba as going more berserk while his injuries were more severe. The senzu was just a consequence of the injuries.**

 **Rule of thumb: if Cabba trusts in someone, expect that someone to be defeated. I swear I didn't notice that until now.**

 **Like last chapter, a huge thanks to Ekrolo for editing. His Champa and Vados are a treasure.**


	26. Epilogue: Truth, final

The U6 rewrite was longer than I expected. With this, I properly say goodbye to this fanfic. I will left my notes and influences at the end.

Epilogue

X

No longer a pawn

In his dreams, he could see his empire crumbling. Hordes of the Space Pirates running amock across the entire universe, with him not controlling the madness. The harsh reality is that his empire was built on lies, but lies were necessary to keep the entire operation working. People loved him, but the consequences of his actions came afloat with the scoundrels working for him.

The Tree of Might incident was certainly surprising, but it wasn't the first attempt at his life he ever experienced. Once, someone tried to kill him with an explosive rubber duck, and he never caught the perpetrator. In his deep thoughts, Frost wondered if he wasn't killed during that incident out of a sense of loyalty, or just pragmatism. Either option could work, whatever that zombie thing was, it certainly creeped him out.

It was pure luck he managed to be free of that metal collar, as the space ship had some technology lying around, and it didn't take him long to find a way to improvise for a key. Right now, it won't work.

When he awakened, he was being held by a Metal Man with so much pressure he couldn't get free in the middle of a wasteland. There was weaponry in the ground, and the land was familiar: it was Planet Mayone. It would be pointless to attack the Metal Man, as his skin was unbreakable to any of his attacks, and he was already in his original form. Wearing the metal collar, he couldn't get free as he was being led to a bunch of Galactic Patrollers. To make things rather worse, he had a piece of glass trusted in his chest, annoying him more.

In front of him, there was a small runt of blond hair. He looked at his direction, with piercing green eyes.

"I see you're awake."

Frost growled. He had to keep his cool. It if it wasn't for the fact he was still wearing the same battle armor and his hair didn't change much, he wouldn't recognize him as Cabba. He had to remain cool, it was always the best option to negotiate with anyone. The moment they show their weakness, it was when you could win.

"Greetings, young Cabba. I didn't recognize you. You used the same transformation as that Saiyan from the other universe. I must assume you defeated him and stole his form, if so I commend your value. I'm proud of you. I had a similar experience you..."

"I lost. We lost the tournament for Lord Champa."

The silence of the land made that comment sore out. The tone in his voice was different. Cabba always spoke with a sense of naivety, a bit odd for a Saiyan. This time, he sounded bloodthirsty.

"You tricked everyone Frost. You tricked me!"

Frost chuckled.

"Don't get so worked up. You only have yourself to blame for being naive."

Cabba didn't say anything for a few minutes, as the two patrollers were approaching them. They were a scrawny guy with the face of a shark, and a hunky guy with the face of a dolphin. Once they arrived at the spot, Cabba gave them something, something small. It was a USB.

"What is that, Cabba?"

"Video proof of your confession." Frost eyes opened wide, he tried to shoot it with eye beans but Cabba put himself between them, "The referee was recording the whole tournament so he could presume to Das from the Coliseum Games, he wasn't expecting it to be taken as a confession of a criminal warlord."

"Now, now..." Frost was smiling quite nervously, "that was just a joke! I just wanted my mark in history! Yes, as the one who mocked the God of Destruction and survived!" Cabba remained quiet. Those eyes of his were putting him on his nerves. "Besides, anyone could falsify the blasted thing. I've been accused of worst, there are countless people who know how to imitate voices in the universe."

Cabba smirked. He never saw him with that smug gaze before.

"You convinced me Frost. I will testify in your defense, but only if you answer me a couple of questions."

Frost tried to get out, but the metal man was holding him too tight. He had no choice but to nod in response.

"Where were you when Magetta was fighting against Vegeta? The Saiyan that took you out of the arena."

Frost took a few minutes to answer.

"I went to speak alone with Hit. I wanted to hire him for something."

"Is that so?" Cabba asked with a curious mocking voice. "Why were you unconscious all this time then?"

"He... used a trick shot on me."

"Would you believe me I've seen Hit personally during his match? If he had cheap shots as you say he has, he would have used them against Son Goku. Let me make a hypothetical scenario: he put you unconscious because you were planning on stealing Lord Champa's cube?"

His eyes opened wide again. He struck a nerve, and had to commend his detective skills.

"Hohoho... you're smarter than you look."

"Next question. Do you know that the Galactic Patrol has a death penalty for the worst kind of evildoers? I just discovered it myself when I was talking with these gentlemen."

"Death penalty? Ho, as if that would work on me. I'm stronger than anyone in that patrol, I can even breathe in space."

Cabba grinned harder.

"There is a place in sector GT-118 that is a cradle for black holes. The most wicked evildoers are thrown in the emptiness of space, where there is a good possibility they will be eaten by a black hole, leaving nothing behind. Tell me, could you survive that, Frost?"

"You're lying."

Cabba kept smiling.

"Stop with that annoying smirk! Look at me, do you seriously want to kill me? Think of the empire! I'm the king of the game, without me, the entire game will be lost!"

"I'm the one doing the questions here," Cabba said, with a serious tone. Even the patrollers were freaked out by his attitude. "I would like to blow your heart out, just like I did with Taura. But you don't have a heart to speak of."

Who was this guy? The naive boy he met during the tree of might was not the same brat in front of him. He was sweating, not only because of the Metal Man's heated iron-skin, but because of that blond freak."

"Next question, and I want to know for sure. Did Lusk work for you? Did he commit the terrorist attack on planet Nectar on your orders?"

Frost gulped. That was so long ago he completely forgot about it.

"I was his boss, but I..."

"So you confess that everything that happened in the last six months is because of you. We can blame Taura's actions on you by proxy."

"C-cabba... Young Cabba, you're like a little brother to me, you're like..."

"What do you think Magetta? What should we do?" Cabba said.

Magetta released steam from his head, and made more of his strange sounds.

"I think I'm done with my judgment," and Cabba raised his hand, making a thumb down in the process."You're guilty. Take him to the black hole, guys."

Frost then started to scream like a scared puppy, trying with every strength he had in his body to be free from the Metal Man's control, but it was completely useless. He even started to cry his heart out and yelling insults at the Metal Man, only to find out he had his ears shut with rocks.

"I'm just joking," Cabba said.

Everyone but him then started to laugh maliciously. The dolphin patroller, in particular, laughed like a hyena, and Magetta laughed so hard lava fell from his mouth to the floor.

"Hey hey hey, don't worry, we don't have such penalty!" said the dolphin.

"Hey hey hey, you should have looked at your face, no worries!" said the shark.

Cabba remained quiet. He didn't look malicious anymore, with the naive child Frost knew once again in there.

"One final question, for realsies. Do you want to know what I learned during the final match of the tournament?"

* * *

I saw Hit defeat Vegeta with his unique powers in a minute. Vegeta was using a much stronger version of this transformation called Super Saiyan Blue, who I can't confirm but I think it has something otherworldly in origin. I could barely see how he did it, but Vados told me how. Hit's power was manipulating time itself, moving freely for a few seconds. Lord Champa was more than pleased, leaving only two warriors in Universe 7's team. The next opponent was the other Saiyan.

His name is Son Goku. He has a weird hairstyle and has no sense of personal space, in fact, if it wasn't for the hairstyle and that he could transform I'll doubt he was even a Saiyan. He fought with Hit, and the two managed to... bond? Yes, bond. They were chatty, and Goku managed to counterattack Hit's time powers.

At the end, both increased their power to absurd levels, ending with Goku to yell for Ken Perten (whoever that is) against Hit. It ended with both breaking the arena and making Lord Champa angry. Let me try to imitate his voice.

"HEY HIT THAT GUY CAN'T KEEP HIS KEN PERTEN FOR LONG, JUST BEAT HIM ALREADY AS HE GROWS TIRED!"

And then Vados said, "Honorable advise lord Champa, even if it was so obvious."

And me that was enjoying the battle had to step up in front of Lord Champa and said, "please reconsider, Hit don't want to win with cheap tricks, he is a proud man, sire", and then Champa put his finger in front of my face with his creepy aura.

"I don't care!", he said with his nasal voice, excuse me I don't imitate him but my throat hurts," this contest is between me and Beerus! You keep your ego in check! You're just nothing but pawns in our little game!"

And then Goku and Hit saw at Champa at that moment, scaring him enough to back down. Vados was still creepily calm as ever. Hit and Goku continued to fight for a bit, until Goku asked Beerus to change the rules so killing was allowed, so Hit could go all out. Champa was more than delighted to allow it but Beerus said no, and while they were discussing again, Goku threw himself off the arena.

And then Hit lost to the next fighter with one punch. I didn't sense anything, so I assume he had divine energy.

Champa was more than angry about Hit disobeying him, and he was about to finish us off for losing. I was deadly afraid, and even tried to beg for our lives but it fell to deaf ears. But...

Hit stood valiantly against Champa. Even if the fight against a God of Destruction was lost, he didn't give in and simply stood ready to fight. Hit struck me as a weird guy when I first saw him, constantly sleeping and rude, but standing against Lord Champa... I had to follow his example, so I transformed into a Super Saiyan to fight too.

But the boss of the destroyers showed up (named Omni-King, by the way), and we weren't fated to be destroyed anymore.

* * *

Frost was more than... puzzled by how much he lost. He missed a whole lot. He and Cabba were on the space ship with the two patrollers heading to prison, with Cabba making sure he couldn't escape or hurt the patrollers. Magetta stayed on planet Mayone waiting for another vehicle capable of taking him home.

"I didn't say yes."

"Is part of your judgment," Cabba grinned. "In a word, the Omni-King wants to host another tournament, but this time with more participants from all universes. Lord Champa gave up his plans, and gave us the order to live for our reencounter with Universe 7."

Frost then smiled, relieved. He won't die that day. Cabba wasn't done.

"Hit told me something when Champa was bringing us here. In space, we saw a giant golden light of the Super Dragon Balls. For some reason, he told me the following: We aren't just pawns in anyone's game. That's what Son Goku told me. Maybe these words would be useful to you," he then vanished."

Frost didn't say more. Knowing he wasn't going to die, he started to get really bored with the conversation. Cabba didn't knew why, but he felt the need to talk about the topic with him. After all, if Frost showed his true face, it was time Cabba did too.

"Did you know my favorite novel is _Love of the Shooting Stars_?" Frost looked at him with his eyes wide open, and trying to hold his laughter. The patrollers likewise didn't look all that impressed, "Laugh all you want, I always knew it was an embarrassing trashy novel. But I always liked it, honestly. The story of a young soldier rescuing a princess possessed by a demon, becoming ruler of the kingdom with her. It resonated with me."

"You want romance?" Frost said, "Sounds quite absurd coming from a Saiyan."

"I wanted power. My family consisted of non-fighters, and I was surrounded by talented people. But curiously enough, I never ate that fruit of might, not even when I had the opportunity countless times."

There was silence. Frost kept ignoring him, and the vehicle did a sudden move to avoid an asteroid. The patrollers yelled with each other a bit.

"She loved to say her generation was better than mine," Cabba said nonchalantly, "But she lived in your lies and Camelo's, so it can't be."

"Camelo? Who are you talking about?"

"A thing of the past. I think your lies still have a purpose, though."

Frost saw him with a confused expression. What was the brat even talking about?

"I'm speaking of making your lies reality, only that instead of you as the leading man, it will be I."

Frost eyes opened wide once again, and grew more annoyed. The words coming out of the kid in front of him were absurd.

"You wouldn't do that!"

"The meaning of truth is the one we give to ourselves. A lie can still inspire us, and my master taught me the strength I had deep in me, and Son Goku and Hit showed me there is a world beyond my master's word. And I'll make sure the universe rest easy, knowing I'm here to take your place."

Frost tried to say something, but it was no use. He simply cursed in silence. In his mind, he was hoping his organization would come to save him at the right moment, but didn't see that happening. Those scoundrels would betray even him, despite being the guy making sure they were even an organized group.

"You know, you're a complete coward, but you never threatened to destroy the planet. I guess you're nicer than you look."

"Be silent already, I don't want to speak with you anymore."

The great faker was taken over by the same kid he thought he could manipulate, as the cameras of the Galactic headquarters were saving the moment for the history of the universe. The kid was nervous about what the future may hold, but it was rather exciting for him. It wasn't every day where the emperor of the universe was discovered to be a fraud, and the patrollers were arresting the man.

In Cabba's mind though, he was more than happy - he was celebrating a true victory against the Space Pirates.

* * *

T **here is a lot to unpack here, but first I will say thank you for reading until the end.**

 **At first, the story was meant to be a "possibly canon" answer to Cabba's origins, but at the end, I got more excited writing a core original story. Now I know someone is mocking me, as all I did was take a formula and archetypes from the source material, but when you're writing at random you don't really see those details until is finished, especially when you're just starting to write. I learned quite a bit about myself in a year writing this, but that's the magic of words, regardless of the quality of the final product.**

 **Regarding this final chapter, I cannot help but talk about how much I love Hit as a character. He is very cool and has a power that appeals to me so greatly, but I admit that he was the hardest to write since his power doesn't translate well to text, especially as I wrote from the point of view of another character. Originally I was going to write his fight with Goku, but I realized that Son Goku nor Hit are really part of Cabba's personal growth as a character. Having them around would feel like padding and filler. Excuse me if you were expecting that.**

 **I think my overall purpose with this fanfic was to give another context to Cabba's transformation against Vegeta. I'm in the belief that is a good chapter, despite its flaws, but could have been given more background. You probably heard by now the question "why didn't the U6 Saiyans turned Super before the tournament? They never got angry?", well, I never had a problem with this because is easy to forget the other ingredient for a Super Saiyan: a pure heart. Even if Cabba said the Saiyans in his side of the pond were good guys, the possible reality is that those guys possibly don't have the heart to turn into a Super Saiyan in the first place. Is like saying all Earthlings should be able to use the Kintoun just because Chi-Chi is pure of heart.**

 **That's why I too changed the context so that instead of transforming because of anger at Vegeta saying he will kill Cabba's parents, I added an element of trauma, and the combined factor of Frost's disappointing him to the point Cabba would have an existential crisis. I'm satisfied with the result. Speaking of Frost, I wanted to write what a "Good Freeza" would be like, but I ended up in a cynical state. The more I think of what Frost did, the more disturbing his empire is like, so I added the factor that without him, the space pirates will turn more rogue-ish. His personality got changed too, as in canon Frost is known to be overly nice and gentle, which for a popular leader doesn't strike me as realistic, so I made him bombastic and with a vulgar side from time to time. Personal experience with a populist leader, trust me on this one.**

 **My favorite character was Caulifla, funny enough. I like what I did with her, and it shames me I didn't give her a proper victory in anything. Better for a next time.**

 **A list of personal influences, and a small note where it did inspire me:**

 *** Metal Gear Solid. The main villain and her lackey were clearly inspired by characters from this franchise.**

 *** Kingdom Under Fire. The vine creatures are inspired from the final level monsters. Coincidentally enough, my friend Ekrolo says it became similar to Devil may Cry 5, which I know nothing about.**

 *** My Hero Academia. You could say the relationship between Cabba and Frost is a mockery of Deku and All Might relationship.**

 *** The fly. The fate of an antagonist.**

 *** Metroid. The element of trauma is inspired by Samus Aran's own conflict in the manga adaptation and Metroid Other M.**

 *** Darkstalkers. A character is inspired by two of its characters, alongside quotes and powers. I originally wanted to reference Midnight Bliss, but didn't know where to put it.**

 **Don't get mad, Akira Toriyama get inspired all the time. In fact, most creators do, to the point is more interesting to catch the references and the inspiration than to simply think something is entirely original.** **With this, I bid farewell, may we see each other in a future story. Remember to wish for true peace in the universe.**


	27. Post Credit scenes

**And ending the fic after a long explanation, we have this scene.**

* * *

 **The Post Credits scene**

"... Well, from the sound of things, you had quite the... Experience, Cabba."

"I uh, guess you could say that, sire..."

The king leaned in his throne, drinking a huge cup of wine, staring past Cabba to somewhere only he could see.

"Super Saiyan's... This business with Frost... alternate universes... Another tournament. There will be much to consider in the coming months."

"I'll help any way I can."

He refocused on Cabba, actually smiling a bit.

"I've no doubt of that. Well then, I won't keep you any longer. Get some rest, you've more than earned it."

Cabba smiled back, bowing to his majesty.

"Thank you, sire! I will" He turned around to leave only to remember something. Leaving him standing mid-step with one foot raised in the air. "Cabba? Is something the matter?"

Feeling very embarrassed, Cabba quickly turned to face the king again, hoping to save himself from much more humiliation.

"I uh, sort of forgot to report something else... It's about the Yardrat's, they're alive."

"What?!" The King shouted, his eyes widening. "B-But how... It was destroyed during the Tree of Might incident!"

"Well,... I don't really know the full story..." Cabba fought the urge to scratch the back of his head. "But, uhh, Lord Champa traded the species for another. Apparently, they moved over to one of these other universes."

"Did he per chance say why?"

"This other God of Destruction thought the Yardrat's were cute looking and wanted them. Vados said Lord Champa wouldn't ordinarily give something of his up so easily but his colleague apparently thought he was... beautiful..."

* * *

 **Special credits to Ekrolo, who wrote this marvelous scene.**

 **Dragon Ball is a property of Akira Toriyama, Toei Animation, and Shueshia.  
Based on stories written by Takao Koyama, Toyotaro, among others.**

 **This is a non-profit work of fan-fiction. Names, original characters, places and incidents either are products of the author's imagination.**


End file.
